The Philippines posted a 5.1 percent growth in the volume of pineapple exports in 2023, according to a preliminary review of major tropical fruit exports by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The report said the Philippines shipped 610,000 metric tons (MT) of pineapples last year from only 580,000 MT in 2022, making the country the second leading exporter of the fruit to global markets.
In 2021, the Philippines shipped 549,000 MT of the fruit. The FAO said the increase was driven by higher China demand for Philippine pineapples.
The report also said the Philippines benefit from rising demand for quality pineapples that sell at premium prices in China.“In this regard, the long shelf life, year-round production cycle and attractive price-to-quality ratio of the MD2 pineapples, the main variety cultivated in the Philippines, proved to be a particularly strong selling point,” the FAO said.
It also reported that Japan and South Korea remain the top destinations for pineapples from the Philippines.
The FAO said that in 2023, the average export unit value of shipments from the Philippines to world markets stood at $585 per MT in the first seven months, representing annual increase of 2 percent.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) show pineapple production totaling 2.91 million MT in 2022, up 1.9 percent from only 2.86 million MT the year before. New data on the fruit have not yet been updated.
