With the first Cherry Express scheduled to set sail on Monday, trucks are blocking the container terminals Port of San Antonio
An indefinite walkout by truckers at the Port of San Antonio in protest at rising fuel prices threatens to cause serious disruption to the start of the Chilean cherry export season.
Exporters were already facing a challenging situation due to climate-related disruption, and with loading of the first Cherry Express vessel due to begin on Saturday, concerns that the shipment will be delayed by the strike are growing by the day.
On Wednesday, the Independent Truckers’ Association of San Antonio (Agreporsai) blockaded access points to cargo depots at the port, stopping trucks from entering or leaving with their loads.
The latest setback comes as producers assess the losses caused by rain and hailstorms. Antonio Walker, president of Chile’s National Agriculture Society (SNA) told Radio Pauta that production could be down by as much as 18 per cent on initial estimates, pegging the 2026/27 crop at 115mn cartons, rather than the 140mn originally forecast. He warned that the rains recorded over the last few weeks added further uncertainty to what the final production figure would be.
Víctor Catán, president of Fedefruta, said this was “clearly going to be a challenging season”, adding the outlook for November and December posed further reason for concern.
Iván Marambio, president of Frutas de Chile, described the situation as “extremely serious for the industry”. He said the association had cancelled its participation in an event on Wednesday at the San Antonio International Terminal (STI) to mark the launch of the 2026/27 season. The event was also due to be attended by government officials and the Chinese ambassador.
Nearly half of all Chilean fruit exports pass through San Antonio. According to Marambio, the loading of the first Cherry Express – the direct maritime service transporting fruit to China – is set to begin this Saturday, with the vessel scheduled to depart on Monday. However, 33 trucks are currently blocking the port’s container terminals and off-port storage facilities.
He said the situation “poses an even greater challenge to the start of the cherry season, which is already facing uncertainty due to climate conditions”.
Marambio called for negotiations to find a solution to the impasse, and urged the authorities to take immediate action to safeguard access to the terminal and ensure its continued operation.
Agreporsai is understood to have held a series of meetings with port operators but failed to have reached a resolution thus far.
The Chilean Maritime and Port Chamber (Camport) warned the blockades could lead to delays in container shipments and disrupt vessel service windows. It has called for a return to normal operations and the maintenance of institutional channels for dialogue.
