Posts Tagged “imported fruit”
The first breakbulk shipment of Chilean winter fruit to arrived by boat in the U.S at the Port of Wilmington (North Carolina) on December 18th. As we get further into the winter, more frequent arrivals are occurring.
The ship held over 756,000 boxes of fresh cherries, blueberries, stone fruit, and table grapes. The imported fruit is stored in the port’s 800,000 on-dock refrigerated warehouse complex before distribution by truck to Eastern markets.
During the winter fruit season from December through April, the Port of Wilmington expects to receive at least 25 shiploads of fruit from various Chilean ports. Wilmington was the first U.S. port to receive fruit from Chile this winter.
In the 2012-13 season, the Port of Wilmington received about 18 million boxes of Chilean fruit, up 22 percent from the previous season.
Exactly how much fruit from Chile will arrive a U.S. ports, which besides Wilmington, is primarily Philadelphia, PA and Long Beach, CA, depends on a number of factors.
Naturally, Mother Nature plays a critical role and those climate conditions during the growing season in Chile has meant slower development, harvest and ultimately arrivals to the U.S. Some freezing weather at critical times also is expected to reduce total volume. Finally, depending on currency values, Chile will ship to Europe and other global markets if better profits are likely.