Project seeks to increase blueberry and raspberry varieties in Maule
VILLA ALEGRE. An intense day of analysis aimed at raising the growth of the berries sector in the Maule Region was held at the Agrope-cuarias Research Institute (INIA) Raihuén.
More than forty attendees gathered around the seminar "Diversification of blueberry and raspberry varieties", an activity promoted by the project "Prospecting and validation of new alternatives of high nutritional value to boost the industry of the Maule Region" which has the financing of the Foundation for Agrarian Innovation (FIA) and executed by INIA. The day had four technical talks, at the beginning of which the regional director of INIA, Rodrigo Avilés, stressed that in the framework of the work of the Berries Maule Extension Program work lines were defined jointly with the productive sector and agricultural institutions of the region.
"One of the relevant topics was that of diversification, that is to say, looking for new varieties of berries and even reaching new species," he said.
DEMANDING CONSUMERS
The macrozonal representative of FIA in the O'Higgins and Maule regions, Robert Giovanetti, stressed that current consumers are increasingly demanding regarding the organoleptic characteristics of the products, so “instances like these are relevant to respond to the requirements of the different markets ”.
Meanwhile, the INIA agronomist, Carmen Gloria Morales, stressed that the project "is in full tune with the industry's demand to boost the varietal supply validated under the soil and climate conditions of the Maule Region."
Regarding the early incorporation of new varieties of berries in the area, the professional indicated that basic information on the behavior of new varieties obtained by a multidisciplinary team of INIA is being collected.
The seminar featured talks by INIA researchers Cristián Balbontín and Javier Chilian, who referred to "quality" as the sum of factors from plant to harvest and "importance" of propagation and conservation systems of plant material, respectively .
On the part of the agribusiness, Gustavo García of the Comfrut company referred to the work done, mainly with the Dolomia variety, and to the projections of the frozen industry linked to the varietal renewal.
Finally, Julia Pinto of the Blueberry Committee, announced the vision of the company and its new parameter of quality measurement, considering the correct selection of varieties, the productive field, harvest, post-harvest, and the verification of the finished product.
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