On Wednesday, August 26, from 10.00:XNUMX am (Chilean time), the first Professional Avocado Conference will be held, organized by Agricultural Seminars, where five of the best researchers will participate to address the issues of quality, production, diseases, firmness, postharvest and technologies regarding the efficient cultivation of avocado.

We spoke with the renowned INIA researcher, Bruno Defilippi, one of the participants of the event.

What is the importance of the meeting?

• This activity focuses on the main issues that limit the export of avocados to distant markets, such as the softening of the fruit and the development of rot. Considering in both, the pre-harvest and post-harvest factors that affect the effectiveness of the technologies currently in use.

What makes it unique or different from other events like this?

• It is an event that starts by providing the physiological bases to understand quality attributes as complex as the softening process that occurs during post-harvest. This time, the event brings together the main researchers working on issues in Chile.

In addition, the panelists are renowned academics. What is the importance of the academy getting involved in the research and development of this crop?

• In Chile, the academy has always been linked to the industry in fruit development. In the case of avocados, this development has come from different institutions such as those involved in this seminar, which have allowed addressing issues in different aspects of this species. In this context in recent years, this collaborative work has focused the study on the themes to be discussed in this conference.

I see in the program that there is an emphasis on the post-harvest process ...

• Chile, as a country that provides fruit to distant markets, needs the use of post-harvest technologies to reach markets as far away as China with quality fruit. In this context, at INIA we have been working together with universities and companies in seeking the best strategies, including technologies, to be able to reach our destination with a quality avocado.

 Finally, what is the contribution of this seminar for the industry?

• The fruit industry is very dynamic and must be prepared to respond to changes, whether in markets or those imposed by the environment, such as environmental stress. And to respond to these changes, having a good knowledge base is the main thing to be able to propose modifications or the implementation of new technologies or processes. This seminar will address issues such as the heterogeneity of the product, the processes and factors involved in softening, and the development of diseases.

Rapporteurs and topics

The INIA researcher will be together with Romina Pedreschi, Ph.D Researcher at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso; Reinaldo Campos, Ing. Agr. Ph.D. and researcher at UNAB; José Ignacio Covarrubias, Ing. Agr. M.Sc. Ph.D. and researcher from the University of Chile; and to Paulina Sepúlveda, Ing. Agr. M.Sc. Michigan State University and Consultant in Plant Pathology. The conference will present on "Strategies for the efficient use of postharvest technologies in avocado for distant markets"; “Heterogeneity and synchronization strategies of the ripening of avocados cv. Hass ”; "From the inside out, bases to understand the firmness and softening in avocado"; “Advances in mineral nutrition to improve the production and quality of the fruit in the avocado”; and "Important diseases in avocado postharvest management".

Defilippi hopes that the meeting will awaken the interest of the industry and that this opportunity will be taken advantage of to have top-level researchers addressing critical issues in avocado. "Each topic will be addressed providing solid bases on which the attendees will not only update their knowledge, but will also give them tools to understand and face current challenges."

During the day, after each talk there will be a round of questions to delve into each topic, and to participate you must connect to the following link: