According to the union of the floricultural sector, the great demand for flights for export could exceed supply.
The Valentine’s season for Ecuadorian export flowers started this Sunday with good prospects for demand, but with obstacles in the real possibility of covering it, due to the lack of logistics.
In agreement with Alejandro Martínez, executive president of Expoflores, The first shipments for this Valentine’s Day have already begun, “which is complex, especially in terms of logistics”. He explains that Expoflores carried out a survey in August and September 2021 to calculate the demand in 2022 and the conclusion was that there would be at least 30% more demand than in 2021. This is excellent news considering that, due to demand, 2021 was a year of recovery. However, the logistics issue (the ways to send the product) has been a problem since last year.
It’s all part of the aftermath of the pandemic. It is that the sea route is currently saturated because all the raw materials have used containers as storage instruments for various products. So, the airway is now the most demanded for shipments. This is also saturated and therefore there is a space deficit, for the moment, of 8% to the US and 24% to Europe.
If anything, Martinez says that Valentine’s Day 2022 is projected to be 1.5% to 2% above 2021. However, if it is a good result, it ensures that between 2,000 and 2,500 tons of flowers would not make it out of the country.
When asked about the destination of the 2,000 tons that cannot be exported, Martínez explained that a small percentage will surely will be sold in the interior of the country, but most of it will go for composting. This procedure makes the flowers a very expensive fertilizer, but very rich for the soil, for the benefit of future harvests.
Another issue that also complicates the picture a bit is the shortage of paper worldwide, which also translates into a lack of cardboard for packaging. The increase in the value of inputs is another problem they face.
Meanwhile, Quito airport has prepared itself as it does every year for the Valentine’s season. Luis Galárraga, Quiport Communications Manager, operator of the airport, reported that it has held planning meetings with all the cargo airlines that operate in Quito and so far no airline has reported flight cancellations or logistical problems for this year. Despite this, they indicate that they are aware that the dynamics of the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic can alter things from one moment to another.
What’s more, Quiport has launched an incentive plan for cargo airlines that operate in Quito and increase their capacity, offering them discounts on some airport services. This incentive plan was made known to the airlines in December 2021. “We trust that the airlines will respond favorably. capacity increase it can happen by using larger cargo planes or increasing frequencies”, says Galárraga.
Additionally, he recalled that last year was particularly positive for exports by air, with 230,000 tons of cargo exported throughout the year (92% corresponds exclusively to flowers), a figure that exceeds all previous records in the history of the airport.
He explained that at the Mariscal Sucre airport Thirteen cargo airlines operate regularly (eleven on itinerary and two in charter mode), but other airlines can also arrive on Valentine’s Day exclusively to attend to the season.
On the subject, Gabriel Oliva, CEO Avianca Cargo, 2021 was a supremely challenging year that historically was recorded as the flower season with the highest volume of cargo transported. Therefore, for this 2022 season at Avianca Cargo, the plan is to offer a robust service, according to the needs of customers, which allows them to support the industry. In this sense, he says that his operation has been strengthened in three key points:
- We allocated more capacity of our cargo fleet dedicated to the transport of flowers, operating up to 4 daily frequencies from Ecuador and growing the total capacity offered in double digits compared to the same season last year.
- We expanded our warehouse capacity.
- We reinforced our work team with more personnel and operational shifts.
The foregoing, says Oliva, with the aim of strengthening our operation during this season and continuing to support the growth and development of flower growers in the country.
The airline representative also commented that for the Valentine’s season, a growth in the offered capacity of approximately 15% more than the 2021 season is projected in A330-200F aircraft, operating up to 4 daily frequencies from Ecuador.
Projection of exports in pandemic
In making an assessment of what has been happening with the pandemic, Martínez commented that the sector came from a 2020 very bad, in which flowers were no longer generated in 17% of the hectares and in which 11,000 jobs were lost. By the end of 2020, with hard work it was possible to reverse the problem and bet on the reactivation of the US, which resulted in a 2021 with good sales, that it was even thought that they would exceed the $900 million in the year. However, logistics problems meant that these figures were not reached, but a lower figure: $852 million, which in any case was higher than the $847 million exported in 2019. 2021 was a good year, in which the sector recovered 18% of its production hectares and 10,000 jobs were created. This year, $870 million could be exported.
In the future, Martínez considers that the government should work on a public policy that promotes the activity of both import and export cargo, so that spaces are opened. Also work on regulations to facilitate transit logistics that can make use of multimodal models of a regional nature (maritime and air), that would be attractive to various sectors.
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