Pineapple exports may hit record high this year

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ pineapple exports may hit a record high of over 690,000 metric tons (MT) this year, driven by better output and higher demand abroad, according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The Philippines’ total pineapple exports may reach 692,365 MT by the end of the year, nearly 16 percent higher than last year’s 598,077 MT.  The latest estimate is also a  quarter higher than the average shipment of 550,457 MT from 2018 to 2022.

With the latest estimates, the Philippines is expected to retain its title as the world’s second biggest exporter of pineapples behind Costa Rica.

FAO said the Philippines’ pineapple exports rose by three percent year-on-year in the eight months through August, driven by higher shipments to China.

China is the Philippines’ top market for pineapple exports, cornering at least 40 percent of the market share.

Chinese consumers continue to buy more premium pineapples especially with the MD2 variety from the Philippines.

“Futher key import markets for pineapples from the Philippines remained Japan and South Korea over the first eight months of 2024 at quantity shares of some 33 percent and 16 percent, respectively,” the FAO said.

“Shipments of Filipino pineapples to both destinations expanded substantially from the previous year  by  28 percent to Japan and 37 percent to South Korea,” it said.

The FAO noted that the average export unit value of Philippine pineapples from January to August posted a five percent increase year-on-year to $617 per MT.

The expansion in pineapple production and shipments of the Philippines and Costa Rica, the world’s top exporter, could drive global pineapple exports this year by about four percent on an annual basis to 3.3 million MT, it said.