Chile blueberries

Brie Reiter Smith has been named general manager of Driscoll's operations in Chile as part of a move to build the global berry supplier's blueberry export business.

“I am excited by the future of Driscoll’s presence in Chile,” said Reiter Smith in a press release. “We are organising our grower partnerships to capitalise on the ever increasing market demand for premium quality blueberries.”

The appointment is part of a broader company restructuring, with Driscoll’s of Chile looking to become the premier exporter of blueberries from Chile. As part of building its global business strategy, Driscoll’s of Chile is streamlining its operations and focusing on the peak blueberry-growing season from November to February.

“Over the past year, we have been evaluating our global blueberry strategy and we are now ready to implement a number of changes designed to ensure out future success,” said Driscoll’s Americas executive vice president Soren Bjorn in a statement released Monday. “Due to the changing role of Chile in the global blueberry market, we have adopted a strategy to focus our supply efforts to the period we believe Chile will remain the world’s leading source of blueberries.”

Daughter of Driscoll’s CEO Miles Reiter, Reiter Smith is a fourth generation grower and has spent the last two years working in the blueberry industry in Chile.