Piñata Farms kicks off Katherine harvest, with Queensland harvest anticipated to begin late-November
Following four weeks of harvest in Darwin, Honey Gold mangoes – known for their distinct, rich flavour, deep golden colour, and long shelf life – will return to Australia’s supermarket shelves, as producer Piñata Farms transitions harvest to its main farm in Katherine.
Piñata Farms managing director Gavin Scurr said the company’s 145ha Katherine crop is expected to yield slightly more than last season because all trees were now in full production.
However, the national 2025/2026 crop – including mangoes grown by some 25 third-party growers in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia – is expected to yield a similar volume to the previous three seasons.
Harvest in Katherine began on 10 November, following four weeks of harvesting at Piñata Farms’ 70ha Darwin farm. Fruit from that region has been available in South Australia since late-October.
“While volume from Darwin was not as high as initially hoped, our focus on quality has paid off and it was probably the best we’ve achieved since the first harvest in 2019,” Scurr said. “We’re attributing the improvement to successful trials involving adaptations to our growing practices. We’ll look at increasing the scope of these trials leading up to next season.”
Katherine-based third-party grower Razor Rock Farm is also expected to start harvesting in early November. The harvest will then head east, with the Bowen region marking the first of the Queensland crops to harvest Honey Golds around late-November to early-December.
“The Queensland crop is patchy in some areas – possibly due to a prolonged winter that included unseasonal warm spells. The broader industry is experiencing the same patchiness with other varieties such as Kensington Pride, R2E2 and Calypso,” Scurr explained.
“We’re expecting to end up with a reasonable crop, similar to the past three years. Quality will be as great as always as the Honey Gold is a consistent performer.”
The variety will be available nationally at leading supermarkets until late-February or early-March.
