Experts from the United States Department of Agriculture are inspecting the first Dominican facility specifically designed to pre-treat mangos for export to the United States. The pre-treatment is designed to certify that Dominican mango exports are free to access the US market.
Yesterday, the DR1 erroneously carried a story from El Caribe whereby it stated that the pre-treatment would be used to eliminate fruit fly. The DR is not affected by the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata. As reported the installation is located in the city of Moca, in Espaillat province. The United States makes up 45% of the international mango market. For the Dominican Republic, according to the El Caribe, the export of this popular fruit can represent as much as US$40 million per year, compared to the current US$6 million. The DR faces stiff competition from Mexico, the world’s largest mango exporter, as well as from Ecuador and Peru. The largest competitor for a share of the US market is Haiti, currently the largest single Caribbean supplier to that market.