Leading companies in the tropical fruit sector
These are the two main companies that prevail in the sector:
Tropical Millenium and the trend “healthy
In Tropical Millenium, they sell not only avocados, mangoes and papayas, but as they indicate they are lucky to sell health, beauty and gastronomy. Avocado is a superfood that is fashionable and has become a commodity and papaya is also the fruit of health for the benefits it provides. In addition, seasonality has greatly helped the consumption of the tropical increase progressively and add to the usual shopping basket, as has always been the apple or banana.
“The healthy healthy trend has triggered consumer trends. Eating and being healthy has become a way of life, “says Javier Fernández, CEO of the company.
The image of Spanish avocado in European markets is very good because the location and freshness of the product are strengths that differentiate it. “Our geographical location is the key to other origins,” says Fernandez.
Tropical Millenium considers it relevant to increase production and affirm that they are working on it. “It is a pity that we do not produce more avocado, because consumption does not stop growing. Spain is losing prominence as a producer country compared to others like Peru, Chile, Colombia or Mexico, where it does not stop growing “, reveals the CEO of the company.
The European Union is the main fruit market of the firm based in Vélez (Málaga), where France, Germany, England and the Nordic countries stand out. They currently sell a volume of 12,000 tons of tropical fruits, of which avocados are 6,500 Tn-54%, mangoes 5,000 Tn42% and papayas 500 Tn-4%. They invoiced in 2017 a figure of 28 million euros with a human team of 90 workers.
Frutas Montosa and its bet also for the fourth range
The most demanded product of Frutas Montosa is the avocado since it is the fruit with which the business was started and their specialization has allowed them to be experts in its production and commercialization. Secondly, they have the guacamole which meant an important advance in their assortment of products since it meant the introduction of the IV range in the production. The third most demanded product is the mango that in recent years is having a very positive trend in consumption and, finally, the mango sauce that has been its most recent addition.
A problem posed by this leading company in the sector of tropical Spanish fruit is that of the stringent waste regulations. In recent years, the European Union has increased restrictions on pesticide residues in food by establishing “maximum pesticide residue limits“. Along with these measures, the European food distribution chains themselves are imposing more stringent and even more restrictive regulations than the existing regulations. To adapt to these new needs of the European market, they have implemented their own multi-waste laboratory in their facilities. The laboratory has state-of-the-art equipment that allows greater control of the fruit and the ability to analyze a greater number of samples, obtaining the maximum guarantee in the control of compounds that may be harmful to the environment and the health of consumers. .
For Frutas Montosa the commercialized volume of fresh (avocado and mango) was 30,600,000 kg in 2017, with a turnover last year of almost 120 million euros. Montosa is focused on the European market. Countries like France or Germany have great weight in their sales. Although the Asian countries are discovering the products and experiencing great growths year after year, at the moment they do not represent a priority for the commercial firm based in Valle Niza (Malaga).
