Tamandua News- Mars 2010

March 2010

Mango crop at Fazenda Tamanduá.

We are getting to the end of the mango harvest, which represents a good part of Fazenda Tamanduá’s income.

Fazenda Tamanduá’s fruit growing center, certified since 2000, is the largest in Brazil in the production of biodynamic mangoes, holding the IBD’s Demeter seal and OIA Brasil’s GlobalGap seal.

Fazenda Tamanduá itself has 30 hectares of drip-irrigated land, with two varieties, Tommy Atkins and Keitt. We are increasing our percentage of Keitt mangoes, thanks to a re-grafting process.Besides this area, we are working on a leased, 14-hectare orchard at Itaporanga, less than 100 km from the farm, also certified; and with three small integrated producers, who receive certification and technical guidance from Fazenda Tamanduá; they have three, four and five hectares, respectively.

The present production capacity amounts to 100,000 four-kilo boxes for export, 100 tons for the domestic market and 60 tons of rejects.

For the harvest and all the related work, in addition to 25 of the farm’s employees, 30 men and 30 women who live in the neighborhood were hired. During this period of the year, from October to January, the driest time, there are no economic or farming activities in the field. Salaries are the same for both genders, harvesting contracts are signed, and all the procedures of the Occupational Health Program are fulfilled.

The harvest – step by step

In order to ensure the traceability of the mangoes, both for the Demeter and the GlobalGap certifications, the fruit is harvested weekly in the field, identifying each different area.

Placed in containers, the fruit is weighed in order to calculate the productivity per hectare, and then taken to a shed with special tables. Young and older women, in uniform, cut off the stems of the mangoes and place them head down so that the latex can drain from the fruit, preventing stains from forming later and avoiding the product falling below standard. At that time, the first exclusion is effected, setting aside mangoes with clearly visible defects.

Export-type mangoes stay 30 minutes in the place, on average, before being moved to the shed where they are washed, selected and packed.

On arrival, the contents of the mango containers are poured into a tank with clean water and washed.

After they are brushed and blow dried, the mangoes go through a process of selection per size. The workers pick up the mangoes, discarding those with any defect and placing the top quality fruit into reinforced cardboard boxes.

The size of the mangoes determines the quantity of fruit per box, and consequently the gauge.

Each box is weighed in order to ensure the minimum net weight of 4 kg.

After that, pallets are composed, with each pallet holding 216 boxes of a particular gauge. The wood is treated and of sustainable origin, according to the European market’s requirements. The corner brackets are made of cardboard.

The mangoes then go through a pre-cooling process in a tunnel in order to lower the temperature quickly, to 8°C, and the pallets are then stored until the refrigerated container arrives.

This temperature will be maintained until arrival in Europe. We operate with 40-foot containers, holding 20 pallets each.

After a last inspection by the Ministry of Agriculture, which supervises the whole process, a truck transports the pallets to the Port of Natal, RN, which is frequently visited by vessels bound for Europe.

The journey to Rotterdam takes 11 days, the time necessary and sufficient for EOSTA, our buyer, to make pre-sales.

Remarks

If the 2008 crop was affected by the world crisis, which de-capitalized the European intermediaries and distributors, who were unable to obtain bank loans, reducing the volumes imported to almost nothing, the 2009 crop also had some problems.Our sole buyer, for close to 10 years, has been EOSTA in Holland. Our trust in them is such that we sell to them on consignment. Because our products are high quality, we can always get the best prices in the market, not selling at a fixed price, which limits the opportunities presented by price fluctuations due to the supply in the European market, which varies from week to week.

Due to a long, abundant rainy season in the sertão, the mango trees’ flowering period – which, in the organic farming method, is brought on exclusively by water stress – started very late; as a consequence, harvesting began only at the end of October.As always, the organic/biodynamic mangoes from Northeastern Brazil were the first to arrive in the European market; but as from December there was already competition from lower-priced Peruvian mangoes, thus reducing our prices. For that reason, we were informed by our buyer that they did not want our fruit after Christmas!

For the first time, the buyers, having the opportunity to choose between certified organic and biodynamic mangoes, opted for the latter, recognizing the broader scope of this certification. Another problem is the European market’s demand for mangoes of ever smaller sizes: nothing lower than 7, and high appreciation of sizes 8, 9 and 10. We should not forget that the dream of a happy mango tree, cultivated in the biodynamic method, is to produce big, beautiful fruit, with no room for small fruit!

In addition, the prices obtained do not stop falling. Some years ago, we got as much as € 8.50 per 4kg box, while this year, the highest price was € 6.50, the lowest being € 2.50.

Looking ahead, due to the highly complex logistics, the ever greater requirements of the European market, the bureaucracy, the weakness of foreign currencies in relation to the Real, perhaps it is no longer advisable to bet on the foreign market!

That is already the case for organic melons and watermelons, for which the national market offers much more attractive prices. This year, Fazenda Tamanduá opted not to export them, in order to dedicate its production to certain Brazilian clients, who selected the varieties and worked out with us a schedule for production and delivery. In fact, producing during the dry period thanks to an efficient drip-irrigation system, we can plan the production of cucurbitaceous fruit perfectly. Another important factor is that we have shorter production cycles, thanks to the very sunny climate and long days.

We are probably moving towards building a certified frozen-pulp production unit, in the course of 2010, which will be capable of processing melons and watermelons, as well as mangoes.

Fazenda Tamandua would appreciate to have your comments!

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Fazenda Tamanduá
Caixa Postal 65 - Patos / Paraíba - CEP 58700-970 - Brasil
Tel.(83)3422-7070 Fax(83)3422-7071