Grape, blueberry and mango, what news brings the harvest season of these superfruits?
While you read this article tens of thousands of peoplethey are on the peruvian coast harvesting grape table and blueberry from exportation and from the middle of this month they will begin to pick and process mango in Piura.
The three fruits are in the top 'five' of the Peruvian exporting fruit basket: the grape leads it, the blueberry is in third place - until now -; and the handle, in the room. How is the harvest of this campaign coming? Here the point of view of the experts.
THE GRAPE, PRESSURE FOR THE 'PREMIUM'
With about 19 thousand hectares installed, according to the Association of Table Grape Producers of Peru (Provid), the outlook is for the fruit to grow in volume, value and certified areas by Senasa (suitable for export) at the end of the year. In volume, it is estimated that it will advance by up to 15% says Carlos Zamorano, general manager of Provid.
This increase would be explained by the higher yields (from 30% to 50% more) of new varieties, subject to royalties, which have gone replacing the traditional Red Globe, explains Ernesto Gallo, professor of the master's degree in agribusiness at the University of Piura. According to Provid, this last variety occupies 30% of the surface of the fruit.
“People are worried about having good color and Brix (sweetness) to be able to compete,” warns Michelle Aspee, operations manager at CBA Agrotecnia, specializing in grape packing services, about the pressure imposed on the business by the preponderance of varieties 'club'.
Thus, in value, thanks to the new varieties - of which Provid estimates there are some 50 in rehearsal- table grape shipments would grow 8%, up to US $ 820 millionsays Luis Corvera, general director of Fresh Fruit Peru.
"The harvest comes in normal form. We see the market much better than last year. Production in the United States is somewhat smaller and there is expectation to receive Peruvian fruit towards the month of December”, Says Enzo Pareja, commercial manager of Complejo Agroindustrial Beta.
FIRST IN BLUEBERRIES SINCE THIS YEAR?
The laurels of the year would be taken by the cranberry, which with 9 thousand and 10 thousand hectares installed this year (according to industry calculations) - in only 7 years - are outlined with 95 thousand and 100 thousand fresh tons exported
According to Corvera, in value they would grow at least 25%, what would position berries as the second agro-export product, with US $ 683 million, displacing the avocado. Is that, according to the executive, the offices of basic ingredient of guacamole they will close the 2019 with US $ 630 million, after an 2018 of messy shipments and low prices.
At that rate, In the 2021, with 110 one thousand tons projected, Peru will become the main global supplier of blueberries, surpassing Chile (whose offer is close to the 100 thousand tons), the sources agree consulted This scenario could materialize this year, as conflicts in the neighboring country are affecting export logistics, Corvera notes.
What allows the blueberry industry to grow at this rate in Peru? La speed of production cycles (the berry can be harvested a year and a half to install it) and the access to genetics, says the agribusiness specialist, Federico Beltrán.
In addition, he notes, since last year also the business favors the opening of the Chinese market, deconcentrate shipments to the United States and Europe. Is that in the Asian giant the blueberry is "like an iphone”, Illustrates Beltrán. "It is seen as an aspirational product”, He clarifies, emphasizing the opportunity it represents in price.
This variable, added to the higher yields that, as in table grapes, bring the new varieties, They leave aside fear of excess supply and depletion in return to the producer. "The real margin of the business has not fallen. It may have increased, because 5 years ago, the price was US$10/kilo and the average production for one hectare was between 5.000 and 10.000 kilos. If you do a multiplication, you had a margin of 80% and billed US$80,” said Carlos Gereda, executive president of Inka's berries, the genetics developer and producer of blueberries, in an interview with Día1 last September.
"Today there are fields that produce 20.000 kilos per hectare at US $ 5- US $ 6 per kilo, which are US $ 120 thousand. The margin is 70%. So, you even have more operating margin, because you have grown as a country, it has more technology and better productivity, which makes you more efficient at lower cost and more margin, ”he analyzed.
THE HAND POINTS ASIA
This campaign, the Association of Peruvian Mango Producers and Exporters (Apem) estimates that Fruit exports will total around 198 thousand tons (9 thousand containers), which will mean a growth of 29% in volume.
But the increase will not be its greatest feature, because since last September the European Union -which absorbs two thirds of the volumes - impulse higher demands on fruit fly control, which has mobilized the sector and Senasa to meet the measure.
Peru will export 129 thousand tons of fresh mango this season (from mid-November to mid-March), according to the Association of Peruvian Mango Producers and Exporters (Apem).
In this regard, Alberto Irazola, general manager of FLP of Peru - that this campaign plans to export 500 tons of fresh mango and 100 of dehydrated mango- he thinks that the work done in the producing areas -from Piura to Casma- to meet the European requirement allows the sector to project in the long term.
In that sense, it points out that the efforts business today They are set to develop technologies to reach Asia with good quality. He points out that today the mango can be exported to Korea, Japan and China, but it is sent primarily to the first, as returns are more attractive. "The value of the fruit to Korea is higher than to China or Japan," he says. The distance to these destinations - not less than 30 days - so far allows 60% of shipments to arrive with optimal quality, he explains. The favorable margin thanks to the price dampens the investment in development of new way of arrival, he says.
GENERAL INFORMATION
►Fruit and vegetable exports will grow 10% this year, estimates the Association of Agricultural Producer Guilds of Peru (Agap). In the 2018, they totaled US $ 6,647 million, according to the guild.
►In campaign peak, the blueberry (from the end of September to the 13 of October), employs 10 people per hectare, according to Agap. The table grape (from the second week of November to the first of February), 8; and the mango (from the second week of December to the first of January), 2.
► After the 'Coastal Child' of the summer 2016-2017, the table grape business has focused on producers of more than 100 has, displacing the small and medium, explains Michelle Aspee, of CBA Agrotecnia.
► The control method implemented to control fruit fly in mango - 'Systems Approach' - could differentiate Peruvian production from other destinations, by better preserve its quality, commented Juan Carlos Rivera, general manager of the Apem, last August.
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