China: Complex scenario for shipments of cherries and Chilean cranberries

China: Complex scenario for shipments of Chilean cherries and cranberries

28/01/2015

The technical and commercial team of the manufacturer of active packaging for modified atmosphere (AM) Pac Life, are, as in all seasons, present in the most important market and one of the most exclusive for the arrival of fresh Chilean fruit as It is the Chinese market.

Pac Life is an important player in the process of packing cherries and leader in fresh cranberry shipments to Asia, so it is essential that its professionals are in the target markets and witness in situ and on-site arrivals. of its customers during the month of January of 2015, period in which the largest volumes of cherries and Chilean cranberries arrive.

Mauricio Riquelme, founder and commercial manager, comments: "This season presents a great challenge for exporters of fresh fruit and the use of technologies that contribute to the prolongation and conservation of these during the processes of shipping and marketing to the Chinese market, this for two very important and divergent factors at the same time. On the one hand, we see a significant increase in the volume of fruit exported, even more than initially forecast, which generates a significant supply, and on the other hand, a somewhat slow demand for the date and well below the expected".

The executive indicates that this has resulted in lower than expected prices and, on the other hand, an accumulation of fruit under custody conditions that are not optimal and for an indeterminate time, reaching even more than seven days. This has had consequences on the condition of the fruit and have even appeared rotting problems at different levels, as well as fermentation problems given the breaks and temperature rises suffered by the Chilean fruit, which has been verified in some arrivals, in which have been used other MAP containers, little permeable and with less adaptation to thermal breaks and high levels of condensation.

According to the technical director, Ronald Caro, during the visit to the markets of Shanghai (Huishan Market) and Canton (Jiagnan Market) the arrivals with Pac Life "They have arrived without problems to date, both for cherries and blueberries" Ronald further indicates that "the containers used in these species have responded very well, despite the marketing conditions to which they have been subjected. Now we are aware that the rain events were not less in Chile, and that the post-rain fruit will present higher rates of partitions and decay than the package prior to these climatic events.".

At the same time, he comments that in view of the dynamics of the market seen to date, some receivers and exporters consult us regarding: What to expect in terms of the condition and conservation of fresh fruit for the next few weeks ?, on the eve of the Chinese New Year . Regarding this query we could infer that for the case of cherries, for those who did good fungicide control, both in the garden and in the packing and had no temperature problems during the trip, monitoring the condition of the fruit from the packing until the arrival, a valid option is to make storage in refrigerators, but not under the conditions of storage in the markets (containers).

The wait for those lots in good condition is a good strategy as they can approach the eve of Chinese New Year and with this get better prices: in those lots that do not have the storage conditions mentioned above, it would be a mistake to resort to wait or save fruit.

A different story is that of blueberries, as indicated by the engineer: "Although the use of MAP containers has increased, where Pac Life leads in shipments to China, for those who chose not to use AM bags and send the fruit in controlled atmosphere containers or alternatively with CO² generators, they will not have the possibility of making saves and they will be affected by longer waiting times, due to a greater dehydration of the fruit and eventual appearance of rots", It is also necessary to consider that the speed of sale of blueberries is less than that of cherry. Finally, it is added that the Chinese receivers insist and prefer more and more their shipments with sealed MAP bags, this because it contributes to a better fruit cosmetics, greater visualization of bloom (pruina), turgor, condition, quality and flavor, besides, what More importantly, it increases your shelf life and marketing times.

Finally, the professional highlights: "For us this season was presented as a great challenge, this mainly due to the large number of blueberry exporters that would use our technology, being aware of the responsibility and trust it implies, which is why we had a comprehensive and very complete plan for our clients. "Technical support for variety analysis and fruit characterization, plant layout analysis, management and ideal packaging conditions, including the value proposition of high-efficiency continuous sealing equipment for our clients.".

Therefore, for the coming seasons, we are able to offer a master plan with reliable statistics and an online support platform that includes a comprehensive support and advice plan for our clients.

Source: Pac Life