Chile, the first country to start producing blueberries in Latin America, is reaching the peak of its production in this new season, leading daily blueberry exports to the United States to date according to data from the platform Agronometrics.

The southern country had a tough start to the season, starting later than previous years given the problems it has faced with the supply chain. Although the producing areas have easy access to ports, Chile is further away from its main markets; USA, Europe and China, than the rest of its competitors.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.

Problems with shipping have affected not only the cost of their supplies, but also the time it takes to travel. Faced with this situation, exporters have been more meticulous with the choice of the fruit that they would send to distant markets, making sure that it will withstand the longest travel time without losing its quality. Finally, since the third week of the year, Chilean blueberries have been able to invade the US market.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.

Comparing the start of this season with previous ones, Chile has shipped more volume of fruit to the US than in previous years. According to him Blueberry Committee Weekly NewsletterIn January, a higher number of average weekly exports has been registered than in previous periods, its main market being the US, where it has exported 46% of the total volume of the season so far.

However, the initial trend was reversed and the speculations have become a reality: the amount of Chilean blueberries exported daily to the North American country decreased at the beginning of February, and is less than that exported during the 2020/2021 season. These figures do not reflect the country's production, but rather the difficulties it has had to overcome.

The decrease in Chilean exports stands out in a market where the volume of imported Peruvian blueberries exceeded records in recent months. Peru came to represent more than 90% of the blueberries imported daily into the North American country during October.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.

With Peru ending its season, it is Chilean blueberries that occupy the US market. The last week of January saw exponential growth, going from shipping 2602 to 4440 tons in just 7 days, an increase of 70.63%. Even with the drop in volumes during the first week of February, Chile remains the leading supplier of the berry in the US.

Price

The average value of blueberries in the US has been on a downward trend since the peak of the Chilean season began. According to data from USDA Market News (portal of the US Department of Agriculture) and Agronometrics, during the current season the Chilean berry had a peak price of $9.07 Kg/USD on January 20, a figure above the daily maximum reached in 2021, when it did not exceed $8 kg/USD.

Volume of Chilean Blueberries Exported to the US compared to the Average Price.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.

If you want to know more about the future of blueberries in Chile, don't forget to sign up for the XVIII International Blueberries Chile 2022 Seminar to be held on April 7 at the Monticello Conference Center.