Ghana’s Pineapple exports to the world registered a decline of 6% in value in 2021 compared to earnings in 2020.

According to figures from the Ghana Exports Promotion Authority (GEPA), the exports yielded $29 million in 2021.

The country exported $35 million and $31.7 million worth of Pineapples in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

Almost 85.8% of the total exports of pineapples from Ghana went to the EU market.

Belgium absorbed close to 34.6% of the total exports in 2021. Globally, Belgium imported approximately $132m worth of Pineapples; 7.6% of which came from Ghana.

The largest supplier to the Belgian market was Costa Rica with an approximately 66.1% share of the total pineapple imports by Belgium.

Other significant suppliers to the Belgian market were Netherlands (11.1%) and Cote d’Ivoire (6.1%). Total exports of Costa Rica reached $1.6 billion in 2021, compared to $922.74 in 2020.

The largest export destination for Costa Rica was USA (42.6%). Other market destinations included the Netherlands (7.7%), Spain (7%) and Italy (6.3%).

Pineapple export from Costa Rica recorded an annual growth rate of 26% to Belgium and 14% to the USA in 2021.

Netherland’s total pineapple exports amounted to $189.7m in 2021. Largest export destinations for Netherlands included Germany (37.4%), Belgium (11.1%), France (7.3%), Poland (7.3%) and Austria (3.6%).

Cote d’Ivoire, the largest exporter of pineapples in ECOWAS followed by Ghana, exported $33.12 million in 2021.

The EU was the major market for Cote d’Ivoire - France (50.4%), Belgium (24.4%).

At the global level, Costa Rica was the largest supplier of pineapples. Other global suppliers were the Philippines ($284m), Netherlands ($190m) and United States of America ($98).

From the perspective of Africa, Cote d’Ivoire ranked 1st, followed by Ghana and Kenya in the export of pineapples to the world.

Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana contributed about 68% of the total value of pineapples exported from Africa, a trend the two countries have maintained over the years.

Similarly, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire contributed more than 97% of the total value of exports from ECOWAS, indicating a dominant position in Africa for the two West African neighbors.

Globally, Ghana ranked 11th in the order of countries that exported Pineapples in 2021.