The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released its annual report on Chilean fresh deciduous fruit, showing that production and exports of Chilean fresh grapes, apples and pears will all decline in the 2022/23 season. Fresh grape production is expected to decline by 7.1% to 732,000 tons and exports by 7.1% to 565,000 tons; apple production is expected to be 1.03 million tons, down 0.6% from the 2021/22 season, and exports are expected to be 605,000 tons, down 0.8%; fresh pear production is expected to decline by 2.3% to 215,000 tons and exports are expected to be 112,000 tons, down 2.6% from the previous year.
Fresh Grapes
Chilean fresh grape production is expected to decline by 7.1% to 732,000 tons in the 2022/23 season due to a reduction in planted area. The area planted to fresh grapes in Chile decreased from 53,851 hectares in the 2011/12 season to 43,104 hectares in the 2021/22 season, and the area planted to fresh grapes is expected to be 42,500 hectares in the 2022/23 season, down 1.4% from the previous season. The decline in acreage is largely attributed to the narrowing profit margins grape producers continue to face.
Industry insiders say new grape varieties are replacing traditional varieties such as Red Globe. Plantings of new varieties such as Allison, Arra-15, Timco and Sweet Celebration are expanding, while plantings of more and more traditional varieties are declining at an accelerating pace.
Fresh grape yields are trending downward due to drought and competition from more profitable crops. Drought has led to a decline in fresh grape yields in recent years, which is considered a structural problem and will continue in the coming years. It is worth noting that the abundant rainfall in Chile in the 2022/23 season is likely to moderate the more severe downward trend in grape yields. However, the easing of the decline is not expected to last, as the latest data from the Chilean Ministry of Agriculture’s Office of Policy and Research (ODEPA) shows a decline in planted acreage in all regions.
In the 2021/22 season, Chile’s fresh grape exports rose 15.7% year-on-year to a total of 608,110 tons. Meanwhile, fresh grape exports in the 2021/22 season generally faced logistical and port delays. Chilean fruit exporters said that transportation costs have increased significantly, packing materials and containers are scarce, making it difficult to schedule shipments, while congestion at Chilean ports is severe, extending shipment times. the decline in Chilean grape production in the 2022/23 season will also affect exports, with fresh grape exports expected to be 565,000 tons, down 7.1%.
Chile’s top market for fresh grapes exports is the United States, where exports increased by 21.7% in the 2021/22 season to 310,033 tons, accounting for 51% of its total exports. China is the second largest market for Chilean fresh grapes, with exports of 77,610 tons in the 2020/21 season, accounting for 12.8% of Chile’s total grape exports. Chilean exporters expect that Red Globe and other red seedless varieties sold to China will continue to sell well in the 2022/23 season.
Apples and Fresh Pears
Chilean apple production is expected to be 1.03 million tons in the 2022/23 season, down 0.6 percent year-over-year. Although Chilean apple acreage declined by 1.5 percent, the reduction in acreage was partially offset by favorable weather conditions for a better crop due to a wetter than normal winter, longer periods of cold, and warmer temperatures in the subsequent spring. Chilean apple exports are expected to be 605,000 tons in the 2022/23 season, down 0.8% from the 2021/22 season.
Chilean pears were planted on 8,647 hectares in the 2016/17 season, decreasing to 6,165 hectares in the 2021/22 season, and are expected to decrease by 2.7% to 6,000 hectares in the 2022/23 season. Despite favorable weather conditions, Chilean fresh pear production is expected to decline by 2.3% to 215,000 tons in the 2022/23 season due to a decline in planted area.
Chilean fresh pear exports are expected to be 112,000 tons in 2022/23 season, down 2.6% year-on-year. The main markets for Chilean fresh pear exports are Italy, Colombia, Russia and the Netherlands. China is the tenth largest export destination for Chilean fresh pears, exporting 2,497 tons to China in the 2020/21 season and 3,719 tons from January to August 2022, up 48.9% from the previous season.
Source: International Fruit and Vegetable Report
Post time: Nov-29-2022