On August 03 at 10.00am (Chilean time) the International Blueberry Month in its version 2021, and it will be done at a great level, because it will start with Court Brazelton performing a complete and detailed "Update on global trends in the blueberry industry", a topic highly anticipated by world producers that will surely generate multiple questions and answers with recognized international expert.

Cort Brazelton is perhaps the specialist who better knows the industry and the international blueberry market, and he owns a very complete analysis of the reality and behavior of the industry, both in the short and long term, which has not only been successful, but also sets the trend in the global industry.

Old, new and future actors

Its deep knowledge of the reality of each producing country, including those that are entering the market or that could potentially do so, makes it an unquestionable source when defining strategies or planning the industry in any country or region. In addition, he is a generous character when it comes to sharing his expert eyes and is not afraid to express his opinion on complex issues, if this contributes to the growth and consolidation of the industry and the expansion of the market.

Some challenges

Regarding the general need to exchange varieties for other more productive, competitive and in accordance with the high levels of consumer demand, Brazelton warns that it must be faced with the necessary information, and explains that "a good portion of the fruit that is produced in Peru it is probably not going to fulfill the wishes of the market in the next few years, because what works today may not work in the future, but the good news for places like Peru, Mexico or Morocco, is that the variety can be changed and enter into commercial production again within 12 to 18 months ... "and adds, however, that" if this reality is compared with the reality of southern Chile, Oregon or Washington, where I live, we have to wait 3 to 4 years to enter commercial production again, so the risk of adopting and testing new genetics is much higher and it takes more time to validate new varieties, ”he explains.

New projects

In another perspective, referring to the new players who want to enter the global industry, he reflects, exemplifying with the region of the highlands of Colombia and Ecuador, which have the advantage of producing very good quality fruit, but he asks:

“What is the yield potential? How much will the harvest cost be? How will the freight, the logistics work? If Colombia's internal logistics improves and containers and ships are filled, it may be interesting, because the distance to Miami and Europe is shorter. But the time of high blueberry prices for certain windows is past and the returns per unit are going to go down, so if any company wants to enter the blueberry industry, anywhere in the world, which can be Colombia, Oregon, Chile, or it could be China, has to enter from day one with excellence, with very good execution in the field, with a good selection of varieties, with a correct selection of irrigation systems, packing infrastructure, postharvest ... everything has to be done right! ”, warns Brazelton to entrepreneurs of new projects.

All the themes

The reality of local industries and the prospects of the global industry, new fruit standards, future challenges, volumes, new genetics, the Asian market and the reality of China in particular, will surely be part of the topics that Brazelton will address in his analysis and then in the round of questions.

To participate in the talk by Cort Brazelton and those of a score of experts from the global blueberry industry, at the International Blueberry Month 2021, click the following button: