For 2021, watermelon exports were unchanged significantly, during that year 140,093 metric tons were registered with a value of $52 million, mainly destined for the United States of America, reaching $23 million in purchases from the Central American region.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graphic"]
In 2016 the total export value was $53 million, 6% less than the amount exported during the previous year, mainly due to a decline in the international price.
Last year Honduras exported 268 million kilos of melons and watermelons, according to central bank figures.The total volume of exports fell by only 1.1% compared to the previous year.
Forecasts for the 2016-17 harvest are that fruit exports will generate between $60 and $65 million.
Melon producers anticipate that, although the weather conditions were not the best, they may achieve performance"... per hectare of between 900 to 1000 boxes".
Laprensa.hn reports that "...Producers hope to recover from losses in 2014 and 2015, when production was reduced to 700 cases because of damages caused by viruses and whitefly in some municipalities in the south of the country.This had a negative impact on foreign exchange earnings when only 51.6 million was registered in the period 2015 and 2016, lower than the 62.9 million in 2014."
Central American exporters can take advantage of the high prices the fruit is currently trading at in the United States because supply of the fruit from Mexico has been reduced.
From a statement issued by PROCOMER:
The reduced supply of watermelons from Mexico has kept prices high for imported product going to the United States. Since Mexican supply is limited, Central American shippers have the opportunity to leverage a relatively empty market.
From September 2nd to 4th melon and watermelon exporters from Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean will be gathering together in Panama City to discuss issues related to marketing strategies and trade agreements.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Panama:
This Congress will be held from 2nd to 4th of September from 9 a.m.
The varieties of yellow melon and "toad skin" are those which achieved the best prices in the international market during the 2013/2014 season.
From a statement issued by the Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promotion Office (Procomer):
The "yellow" and "toad skin" melons achieved the best prices in the 2013-period 2014 over the last five years in Spain, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development of Andalusia, developed by Hortoinfo .
Purchases of fruit and vegetables by the American nation will go from $8.3 to $9 billion between January and August 2014.
The Department of Agriculture in the United States has recorded increases in imports of fresh and processed vegetables, processed fruits and juices, confectionery, meat and derivatives of chocolate and coffee.
From an article by the Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER) has:
Chilean producers have successfully initiated the cultivation and marketing of watermelons and melons that are characterized by being of higher quality and having fewer seeds.
A press release from the Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promotion Office (Procomer) reads:
Two new varieties of melon and watermelon, which are characterized by their high quality, firmness, more intense flavor and fewer seeds, have successfully been introduced into the country as part of a project conducted by the Faculty of Agronomy of the Universidad Católica funded by the Foundation for Agrarian Innovation (FIA by its initials in Spanish), at the Ministry of Agriculture in Chile.
With the implementation of the decree in Honduras suspending tax exemptions for 60 days, exporters will have losses of $9 million.
With the implementation of the legislative decree suspending tax benefits for 60 days, exporters of melons, watermelons and cucumbers covered by the Temporary Import Regime (RIT) could record initial losses of $9 million.
Honduran melon production for the 2012-2013 harvest is set to perform better because of improved farming practices, which producers hope will translate into increased exports for the country.
A statement from the Costa Rica Foreign Trade Promotion Office reads:
Medardo Galindo, head of Honduran agricultural exporters, explained that "we are expecting an increase of up to 5 and 10% of production, which will mean the country will see an upward curve in production", while in the 2009-2010 harvest 1.100 boxes were exported, in the following period the number rose to 1,300, he also added that if the sanitary and phytosanitary problems, which are being managed, had not occurred, the expansion of production could have been higher.
The financial crisis affecting Europe has resulted in low prices for melons and watermelons.
So says Alexis Bravo, president of the Nontraditional Agribusiness Group in Panama (Grantap), at the end of the XX International Congress of Producers and Exporters of Melons and Watermelons, held in Panama.
"... The European market prospects remain good, but ...
The UN established the maximum level of melamine in liquid infant formula, and new rules on food safety for seafood, melons and nuts.
A statement from the Trade Office of Costa Rica reads:
The food standards body of the UN has set new standards in order to protect consumer health, among which is the inclusion of a maximum level for melamine in liquid infant formula, food safety for seafood, melons and dry fruits.
Melons imported from Guatemala carry a HarvestMark seal which allows consumers to check on the web their origin and cultivation history.
A statement from the Trade Office of Costa Rica reads:
The import company SunAmerica has added a HarvestMark seal to melons supplied by Guatemalan farmers. These are the first Central American melons to use a leading global traceability system, which consist of a label on the product which has a code that the consumer can enter in the HarvestMark website and find out, through videos and photos, on which farm the melon was grown, the farmer who grew it and the whole story behind the product.
The Government confirmed that the US and Europe have suspended the ban that was in place due to suspected salmonella contamination.
The minister of the Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock, Hector Hernandez, explained that they have already exported five containers of melon to the US.