According to information delivered by the Chinese media guojiguoshu, although the shipment of fresh blueberries from Peru has been increasing, the total volume of exports is still well below the level of the same period last year. As of the first week of August of the 2023/24 season, Peru shipped 9.816 tons, a 28% decrease compared to 13.576 tons in the same period of the previous season.

In the first week of August, Peru exported 2.160 tons of blueberries, a decrease of 47% compared to the same period last year. These blueberries were exported to 21 destinations, the first three being the United States (36%), China (30%) and the Netherlands (20%).

During said week, Peru exported 784 tons of blueberries to the United States, a 56% decrease compared to the same period last year, and exported 424 tons of blueberries to the Netherlands, a year-on-year increase of 23%. Peru exported 646 tons of blueberries to China, a sharp decrease of 61% compared to the first week of August 2022. The main exporting companies are Blueberry Peru SAC (35%) and Sociedad Agrícola Drokasa SA (25%).

General Exports

According to information from Proarándanos, so far in the 2023-2024 campaign of fresh blueberry exports, they could be experiencing a negative scenario. According to the entity, until the last week of July, Peru has exported 10 tons of this fruit, which represented a 25% drop compared to the same period in the previous campaign.

In this regard, Luis Miguel Vegas, general manager of the organization, explained to the newspaper Gestión that this drop was due to a lower production of blueberries due to the El Niño phenomenon, which causes high temperatures.

It has been projected that during the 2023-2024 campaign, which began in May of this year and ends in April 2024, the amount of exports would show a drop, especially in its key period.

«A month ago we made a projection and what we saw is that the volume could fall in this campaign between 10% and 15%. This figure needs to be updated," Vegas said.

In addition, one of the most affected varieties is Ventura, blueberries that are planted on 6 hectares throughout Peru. This represents about 35% of blueberry exports in Peru. Likewise, between Ventura and the Biloxi variety they have 60% of the planted area in the country.

"Ventura is the most widely planted variety in Peru. So by coming late in its production, an impact on the export volume is evident," said Vegas.