Planted area with blackberries in Mexico is reportedly set to continue declining this year after some growers abandoned production due to a collapse in market prices during 2009, according to a report from the US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA-FAS).
Production expanded dramatically between 2007 and 2008, USDA-FAS said, leading to a situation of oversupply last year when unfavourable prices forced suppliers to halt exports from May through June.
However, growers believe blackberry production remains a good business opportunity, according to the USDA-FAS report.
In 2007, blackberries were planted across 3,279ha in Mexico (producing 44,135 tonnes per season), a figure which more than doubled in 2008 to 8,193ha, boosting output to 118,421 tonnes.
The bulk of Mexico’s blackberry crop is produced in Michoacán, where USDA-FAS estimates planted are has grown by 160 per cent to account for 95 per cent of Mexico’s production.
The state of Jalisco represents 1.6 per cent of planted area today, followed by Colima (0.7 per cent).
In 2009, the USDA-FAS estimated total planted area with blackberries in Mexico had contracted slightly to 8,131ha, with 115,960 tonnes.
The US is the leading market for Mexican blackberries, followed by the UK and Belgium. The Michoacán harvest begins in October and ends in June.
In 2008/09, Mexico exported 53,661 tonnes of blackberries, raspberries and mulberries, rising to 74,338 tonnes in 2009/10, of which 54,867 tonnes was shipped to the US alone.
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