The European Union is introducing new legislation that will tighten controls on mango imports, as part of its efforts to prevent the entry of fruit fly. 

Juan Carlos Rivera, general manager of Peruvian mango industry association APEM, told Fresh FruitPortal.com the new law would impact the next season. But he said it was yet unclear how severely the sector would be affected.

From Sept. 1, if the mangoes are not grown in a fruit fly-free area or on a farm that where the pest has not been detected in the last three months, then it must be subject to hot water treatment, he said.

"This legislation will come into effect from September this year and it will apply to all fresh mangoes that enter the European territory," said Rivera.

The representative said that this new law will have major implications for the Peruvian mango industry, which ships around two-thirds of its fruit to Europe.

He expected that export volumes to the market could be impacted for the next season due to start in November.

According to Rivera, the industry is working to implement the necessary measures to comply with the new regulations, but he doubted that it would be a seamless process.

"There will indeed be an impact on the sector. What we are trying to do is reduce that impact," he said.

"We have a national fruit fly control program which we've been working on for years and we're working on the eradication of the pest in various areas of the country.

"We already have a fruit fly-free area which is the area around Tacna and Moquegua, but mangoes aren't grown there."

Rivera remains hopeful that the industry will be able to adjust itself in time for the next season in order to avoid major disruption.

"In this instance, we do have fruit fly in the mango-growing areas, and so we have to initiate a block-by-block process of eradication and monitoring to comply with this new requirement," he said.