Chilean fruit exports will contract by 4 per cent in 2016 according to producer organisation Fedefruta. Commenting on the latest projections for the current season, the association’s president Ramón Achurra noted that the decrease reflected a general downward trend in the country’s fruit production and exports since the devastating frosts of 2013.
“This marked a turning point for the industry,” Achurra said. “Since then, largely because of climatic factors, we have not been able to fully recover both in terms of production volumes and exports.”
Achurra said exports have fallen by 13.6 per cent since 2013 when they were at their peak. Fedefruta’s projections point to an export total of 2.338m tonnes for the current year, the lowest volume since 2006.
“Volume-wise, the Chilean fruit industry has gone backwards ten years, in spite of the surge in production of fruits such as blueberries, cherries and dried fruits” Achurra claimed. “Our two biggest exports, table grapes and apples (which together account for more than 60 per cent of our export volume) are forecast to fall by 10.8 per cent and 7.7 per cent respectively in 2016 to 670,000 tonnes and 850,000 tonnes.”
If the estimates prove to be correct, this would mean that blueberries will overtake apples to become the leading export in value terms at US$545m – an increase of US$35m on last year.
Other crops set for a notable fall in exports this year include pears (-13 per cent) and walnuts (-12.1 per cent).
On a more positive note, citrus exports are forecast to rise by 4 per cent this year. This comes on top of an “exceptional” performance in 2015, when exports increased by 33 per cent. Avocado exports, meanwhile, are set to see an increase of 22.2 per cent, reaching 110,000 tonnes, on the back of more attractive prices on international markets.
Fedefruta said it had raised concerns about the fall with the agriculture minister. The organisation is due to hold a series of meetings with producers in the Metropolitan and El Maule regions this month, during which discussions will focus on the development of new production strategies to help the industry emerge from the current crisis.
“The wet spring meant we had a lot of fruit that couldn’t be exported because it no longer had the capacity to withstand a journey of 30 days and arrive in peak condition, even though there was nothing wrong with its quality and flavour,” Achurra noted. “We should be doing more to find other business niches for that fruit.”
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