Chile: Frost causes losses in blueberry orchards in Ñuble

*Explanatory note: The blueberry fields in the Ñuble region were affected by an unforeseen frost during the early morning of October 31. The extent and severity of the damage it could cause to the fruit have not been officially quantified. In the following note, Álvaro Gatica, producer and vice president of the Ñuble Farmers' Association, gives a testimony of the evaluation he carried out on the affected area.

11/11/2022

Serious damage to blueberry orchards in the Ñuble region was caused by the frost recorded on October 31. Losses in some orchards reach 100% of production, depending on location and varieties, which means, in practice, the end of the season for them.

And although the frost also affected some crops, such as corn and potatoes, the greatest damage is observed in blueberries, the main export fruit in the region.

Álvaro Gatica, blueberry producer and vice president of the Ñuble Farmers Association, said that the damage is observed in plantations both in the valley and in the foothills, "mainly from Route 5 to the east, between Longaví and Cabrero." Likewise, he indicated that the frost fundamentally affected three varieties, which are precisely the most planted in the area: Brightwell, Legacy and Duke.

“In my case, for example, in some sectors I have a 100% loss, with Brightwell and Legacy varieties, in Capilla Cox; as well as with other varieties, such as Duke, in which there has been damage, but less, of 50-60%," acknowledged Gatica.

“The loss is not minor, it is quite large, there are people very affected, many farmers. Unfortunately, this happened and we were not prepared, because there was no forecast announcing frost, and it was by sectors, for example, in Cato and Coihueco it affected very strongly. Some producers who have one or two varieties, precisely the most affected, have a 100% loss; others, with more varietal diversification, have partial losses, but also very important ones”, he indicated.

Gatica declined to provide percentage estimates of losses, given that the damage caused by frost begins to be observed several days later and it is still not possible to quantify the magnitude: "there are fruits that look healthy, but then you realize that they are not, and one the part and it is black inside”, he graphed.

Frost damage occurs due to prolonged exposure of the plant to a temperature equal to or less than zero centigrade, since the water that is in the plant tissues freezes. When this happens in spring it is the most complex, since in that period (set) the tissues are more tender and exposed.

drop in production

The fruit grower lamented that “the damage was tremendously great; We have been coming out of last season, which was very bad, and now this is coming to us, so it gets complicated”.

Consulted by climate insurance, he maintained that “they are tremendously expensive. I have spoken with several affected producers, and unfortunately, they did not have insurance. The insurance that exists covers very little, and also has a limit, and the rest are very expensive. I would say that most of those affected do not have insurance.”

With this, he anticipated, a lower production of blueberries can be expected this season in Ñuble, whose harvest is scheduled to start at the end of November. This is because most of the blueberry plantations in the region are concentrated precisely from the highway to the east.

He added that even before this frost, a drop in production could be anticipated, as a result of the previous bad season, since a large number of orchards were not worked this year, so they will not be harvested.

Another effect will be a lower labor demand, since in those orchards with a loss of 100% they will not require labor for harvesting or packing, "and the one that was not affected, when there is a decrease of 50-60% also much of that fruit is going to be frozen, so the volume of what is going to be exported fresh is going to decrease quite a bit," he concluded.

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