Ecuador's nascent pitahaya industry is on the move as young plantings come into production and the industry awaits U.S. market access to compliment an existing export portfolio that includes Singapore, Hong Kong and Europe. However, rising costs may be the kicker. 

The U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently proposed allowing imports of Ecuadorian pitahaya, also known as dragon fruit, under a systems approach, opening a 60-day comment period that will end on June 7.

Ecuadorian Association for Pitahaya Growers and Traders, Daniel Roldán, told www.freshfruitportal.com the industry had been working on a U.S. access agreement for the last eight years, with the process delayed due to the presence of fruit fly in Ecuador.

The market could present new opportunities, but Roldán is under no illusions it will be easy.

"I think it will be complicated at first because the pitahaya is an unknown fruit and we don't know what quality they will demand. I think that once consumers know the medicinal benefits of the fruit, there will be a good outlook," Roldán said. Dragon fruit are not only rich in fiber and good for digestion, but have beneficial fatty acids in their seeds.

"Pitahaya production is very new for Ecuador. Just in the last three or four years we've reached export quality," he said, adding 75% of the volume was traded domestically.

"Over these years we've gained pitahaya export experience in Europe and Asia, but in small volumes."

He said Singapore and Hong Kong were the main markets, while Ecuadorian Central Bank figures show total shipments abroad - including the Netherlands, the main point of entry for the European market - reached 340 metric tons (MT) last year.

Roldán said there were two peak production seasons for the country - December and February.

"In 2015 we had production of 1,000MT and for this year we expect to reach 1,200MT," he said.

"However, within the next two years we should have greater increases a new plantations will enter production."

He said importers were demanding what the sector refers to as 'National Type II', which should go from the 400 hectares currently planted to 600 hectares in 2018.

The executive said competition was "very complicated" in Asian markets, both with Colombian dragon fruit and red dragon fruit sourced from South East Asia. However, he believes the Ecuadorian fruit has an edge over the Colombian product.

"Our fruit is much better – it’s three times more resistant during transit," he claimed.

"It’s because it’s a different fruit and it doesn’t ripen as quickly in transit as Colombia’s - we have a durability of 25 days."

But while progress continues abroad, Ecuador's growers continue to seek to standardize fruit quality while dealing with rising costs. Unlike its neighbors, Ecuador uses the U.S. dollar as its legal tender so the country has not benefited from the same currency weakening that has helped other South American exporters.

"While we have the international certifications that Europe requires for export, we beleive there is still a lot to do at the production level," he said.

"But agricultural costs have been rising and the country's economic conditions have been declining, and I think that will affect the motivation of growers."

Diego Vizcaíno, executive director of Ecuadorian government agency Agrocalidad, told www.freshfruitportal.com non-conventional fruit exports had seen growth rates of 5-6% recently.

"Dragon fruit have been booming in recent years, especially in the Andean foothills, mainly at subtropical levels and in eastern areas (like the provinces of Pichincha and Bolívar), where traditional farmers grow them," Vizcaíno said.

"Currently there would be 1,200-1,400 hectares cultivated and we continue to grow slowly."

Vizcaíno said a range of efforts were underway for the opening of new markets for different crops.

"Two years ago we opened up [in the U.S.] for papaya for example, which was very stagnant. Now they have been joined by blackberries and raspberries, and within the next 90 days dragon fruit will as well.

"We could say that non-traditional exports to the U.S. are enormously favored."

Photo: www.shutterstock.com

www.freshfruitportal.com