Posts Tagged “Peruvian blueberry exports”
A recent detailed 18-page National Berry Report by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service details volumes of berries placed in the market since Jan. 1, 2023. It offers information on strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries from the U.S., Canada, and Latin America.
Peruvian Blueberries
Peru produces about 68 percent of the blueberries in the market so far this year.
The market has received a total of 112.3 million flats of blueberries, up from 101.2 million a year ago so far this year. Peru has shipped 76.1 million flats of blueberries in 2023. For the same dates in 2022, Peru provided 60.3 million flats.
Running a distant second this year is Chilean blueberry volume, which still accounts for a strong 17.2 million flats. This is up from 14.5 million a year ago.
Mexico’s volume to the market is slightly down this year, to 11.4 million blueberry flats, about a million below the 2022 figure.
The state of Georgia dropped way off this winter, from 11.5 million flats early in 2022 to 6.7 million thus far in 2023. Also, Argentina’s blueberry volume to the U.S. this year is significantly down by 1.2 million, to less than 700,000 flats so far in 2023.
Colombia and Uruguay are both slightly down as blueberry sources, collectively accounting for less than 200,000 flats.
Mexican Strawberries
Since the first of the year, strawberry volume from Mexico, totaling 26.7 million flats, almost equals the combined total from California and Florida.
California has shipped 13.7 million flats so far in 2023. Oxnard provided 13.5 million of those total California flats. With Florida providing 14.1 million, the two states in 2023 have combined to ship 27.3 million flats of strawberries.
Florida’s 2023 volume is down year-on-year, from 16.0 million year-on-year. California’s strawberry volume has dropped from 16.7 million a year ago.
Mexico’s volume is up three million flats to date over 2022. A year ago, Mexico’s total strawberry exports to the U.S. totaled 23.6 million flats.
Pharr, TX, is significantly increasing its lead as the strongest Mexican strawberry crossing point. To date in 2023, Pharr’s strawberry volume is 17.6 million flats, up from 14.3 million a year ago. Laredo, TX, rose to 6.0 million flats, up from 4.2 million flats of strawberries in the first six weeks of 2022. The other significant crossing point for Mexican strawberries this year is Otay Mesa (San Diego, CA) which is down two million flats to 3.0 million.
Raspberries and Blackberries
USDA figures show very consistent volumes for both raspberries and blackberries entering the market this year, compared to the same period in 2022. The 2023 blackberry volume is 27.9 million flats, versus 27.3 million in 2022. Raspberry volume for 2023 is 29.9 million flats, up slightly from 28.5 million a year ago.
Mexico is the overwhelming raspberry source, providing all but 300,000 flats for the U.S. market so far. California’s raspberry volume plummeted from a half-million flats in early 2022 to a quarter-million so far this year. So far this year, Canada and Guatemala combine for 38,000 flats of raspberries.
Mexico has supplied about 62 percent of the blackberries for the U.S. market so far this year. Mexico’s blackberry volume this year is up around 1.5 million flats to 17.3 million. All other sources of blackberries account for 10.2 million flats, with California shipping 9.3 million flats into the early 2023 market.
Georgia’s blackberry volume is down about 300,000 flats to 784,238 total in 2023.
Guatemala has shipped about a half-million flats of blackberries in the early weeks of each of the last two years.
Peru has exported 110,000 tons of fresh blueberries this season, representing a 38 percent increase compared to the same period klasst season, according to Agraria.
Shipments of fresh blueberries from Peru were as follows: July 10,786,191 kilos, August 38,797,086 kilos, September (as of the 25th) 57,644,854 kilos. While in the same months the previous campaign it recorded: July 4,806,005 kilos, August 25,636,702 kilos, September 58,108,202 kilos.
Inform@ccion reports the current season (July and August) has had excellent volume, while in the peak months of September and October growth will slow some, with more late blueberries in November, December and January.
It is believed by many blueberries will likely to become Peru’s main agro-export product this season, surpassing grapes.
The 110,000 tons represent half of all that was exported in the previous year.
Over 10,000 tons of Peruvian blueberries have been exported since the start of the blueberry season in March, which is in line with Proarándanos‘ projections.
Proarándanos, a Peruvian blueberry export trade association estimates more than 250,000 tons of the fruit will be shipped by the end of the season.
Over 90 percent of blueberries are forecast to be exported between August and December, and 50 percent between September and October alone.
As of the first week of May Peru had exported 219,706 tons.
China has been the main export destination, closely followed by the U.S. representing 37 percent and 34 percent of exports respectively. Europe accounted for 13 percent of exports, the UK, for 9 percent and other destinations, for 8 percent.
In addition, 92 percent of exports were shipped by sea, while 8 percent were sent by air, and organic crops accounted for 9.2 percent of total exports.
Currently, 44,480 acres are used for growing blueberries.
The month of October kicked off with Peruvian blueberry shipments exceeding 112,000 metric tons (MT), an increase of 59 percent so far in the 2021-22 campaign.
The U.S. is in first place with 55 percent of the market share, growing from almost 35,000MT to 61,000MT.
Agraria reported Peru only exported 70,400MT last year during the same time, almost a 42,000MT increase over last year.
The country’s peak export was registered in the week September 13th with almost 16,000MT, representing a 45 percent increase year on year.
Higher agricultural productivity has led to an increase in blueberry exports this year. Regions such as La Libertad and Lambayeque have increased their contribution by 35 and 151 percent so far, respectively; making up 77 percent of total exports of the fruit.
The European market (excluding the UK) has also grown with a 32 percent increase.
China represents a market with great potential and the demand for Peruvian blueberries grew 86 percent.
To date over 6,000 kilograms have been allocated to India, a market that has recently opened for the product due to the joint work between the public and private sectors, especially the efforts from the National Service of Agrarian Health of Peru (Senasa).
HOLLISTER, CA — Once the North American blueberry season wanes, Peru’s long growing season, steady climate and greenhouse-like growing conditions will provide produce haulers with a constant volume of high-quality blueberries.
“We continue to have new acreage in play, and the crop-set looks heavier, and earlier, than last year,” said Michael Osumi, Berry People’s Chief Operating Officer. “We are expecting to begin shipping in August, a couple of weeks early, with peak arrivals planned for October through mid-December.”
Berry People now has a year-round supply of conventional and organic blueberries as a result of its increasing commercial partnerships in Peru, Chile and North America.
“As Berry People approaches our fourth year in business, our overall volume, continuity, and mix of supply allows us to make larger program commitments with key retail accounts. This year’s Peruvian season is part of that growth, and we are making customer alignments now that we hope to carry forward and upward for years to come as the acreage and volume continues to increase,” said Jerald Downs, President of Berry People.
From the COVID-related packaging supply constraints to port of entry delays, logistics is an increasing challenge for the industry, and Berry People has been chasing these issues head-on in preparation for the next 2021-2022 season. Their one-stop-mixer-dock berry model—shipping both during the summer out of the Central Coast, and in the fall, winter, and spring out of Southern California—continues to simplify shipping.
About Berry People:
Berry People is a year-round, full-line shipper of branded organic and conventional strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and owner of the Berry People brand. Headquartered in Hollister, California, the company’s ownership and key alliance partners hold important production assets in California, Mexico, Chile and Peru.
Peru is the world’s leading exporter of blueberries and volume continues to grow.
Blueberry Producers of Peru (Proarandanos) has forecasted the volume of organic blueberry exports will double during the 2021-2022 season.
Total blueberry exports are estimated to total over 200,000 tons with organic exports reaching 14,000-15,000 tons, up from 7,500 tons last season.
The Association of Exporters (ADEX) has estimated organic blueberry exports will increase 220 percent, as this projection considers shipments for last season standing at 4,000 tons.
With the estimated growth rate, Peru would export 12,800 tons. While export items don’t distinguish between organic and conventional, it is difficult to have a reliable record. The only way to have a reliable record is to gather information from each blueberry company.
According to Proarandanos, the growth in both conventional and organic blueberry exports is due to the productivity, increase in the cultivated area in which they increased by 6,178 acres, for a total of 3,707 acres now.
Peru’s blueberry harvest began in May and will conclude in March 2022, with the largest volumes being exported from August to December.
The Peruvian blueberry industry is expecting a huge 40 percent rise in exports this season to about 165,000 metric tons (MT).
The South American country overtook Chile last season becoming the world’s largest exporter of fresh blueberries, sending 120,000MT to overseas markets. The Peruvian blueberry association ProArandanos reports peak volumes were forecast for early November, when a little over 10,000MT of fruit is expected to be shipped.
Asian countries are set to receive the biggest increase in percentage terms, with exports to the region due to double over last year. Meanwhile, exports to Europe are expected to increase by 50 percent, and to the U.S. by 25 percent. Peru exports about half of its blueberry volume to the U.S., 30 percent to Europe, 15 percent to Asia and the remaining 5 percent to other countries in South America, as well as the Middle East and the Caribbean.
Peru expects to export to Taiwan for the first time this coming season, having gained market access in March. The country began its export season in May, with shipments to Brazil and Thailand.