Strong global demand for Chilean table grapes
From
| 19 January 2023
Overview of table grapes from Chile in the U.S. market, complemented by charts from Agronometrics. Original published on January 18, 2023.
The global demand for Chilean table grapes is strong, but “the focus has to remain on selecting the best quality for export markets”, says Juan Pablo Orozco, Agronomist at producer and exporter Frucentro.
“This season is going to be very challenging, we are not going to export grapes that are not commercially attractive, we are going to lower the cost in materials (boxes) and try to fight for lower freight rates. There are some factors like wars, unpredictable weather, the ongoing pandemic that we can’t control, but will try to deal with that the best that we can. So far the weather has been good and the crops look promising , but is still early to be 100% cheerful we have a long way to go until the fruit is in our costumers hands,” explains Pablo.
Frucentro, with headquarters in Santiago, and a cold storage facility in Malloco, Chile, is an export company with a nearly 40 year’s track record in the market. The owners Felix del Solar and Nicolas Gonzales are table grape growers themselves says Pablo. They produce and export mainly table grapes with peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries and kiwis forming part of their export offering.
Their main markets are the US, Asia, Europe and the rest of Latin America. Frucentro exports 1 million boxes, with grapes making out 50% of this volume. “We export different varieties of grapes such as Arra 15 and Crimson that make up the main volume, but we also export Red Globe, Sugraone, Arra 31, and a little Thompson,” says Pablo.
Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)
However, the last two seasons have been very challenging he says. “The last two seasons have been very complicated due to the rain that we had in February. The high cost of freight last season. Also I have to mention that the pandemic, the Russian war, and all the problems world-wide have affected our business. Many growers in Chile just couldn’t keep up and closed their businesses, while others have been struggling hoping that this year will be a good one. Fortunately the demand for good fruit is still there so we are working hard with our growers and our production to be the best that we can, to not make any mistakes, to deliver to our customers worldwide the best product that we can and expect the highest prices. Our clients all over the world have been working with us for many years. They trust us as their growers, so we have built a business relationship that is strong enough to overcome the troubles we have been dealing with,” explains Pablo.
He cautions that given the narrowing margins and stricter quality control: “Bad fruit has no place nowadays in this competitive business. Fruit has to go a long way from the field, to the shipping to have the best product possible. In these days and with demanding markets any mistake can cost a lot of money.”
The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.
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