Blueberry supplies in North America are scarcer than usual due in large part to logistics problems.

Currently, blueberries mainly come from Chile, which began shipping in the new year, to supply the east coast, while Mexican supplies go mainly to the west coast.

“Supplies from Chile have been good so far. There are some labor supply challenges that create headaches for growers from a production standpoint, mainly due to competition for the same workforce,” says Tom Beaver of Sunny Valley International, based in Glassboro, New Jersey. Beaver also adds that Peruvian supplies have stopped ahead of schedule this year as well. “Last year they lasted a little longer and now they always decrease. But it looks like the reduction was a bit more dramatic this year."

Durable versus perishable products

However, the concern is shipping delays due to issues at the Port of Los Angeles. “They have seen an increase not only in product arrivals, but also in durable goods being sold online. That has created an unprecedented backlog at the port,” says Beaver. “Everything has been spoiled by this. Ships that were supposed to arrive earlier in the week don't arrive until later in the week."

While the offshore volume is available, Beaver says the challenges lie in scheduling fruit availability for the foreseeable future.

Delays like this could potentially create some worrying scenarios. “I think what we will ultimately see is the volume that was destined for the West Coast coming this way. That hasn't happened yet, at least at the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia, which are our two main hubs. But that could create problems for us from a marketing perspective if fruit originally destined for the West Coast starts to make its way here,” he says. “It creates more competition and more volume on the East Coast. However, so far we have not seen that manifesto.”

That said, he does not expect the Chilean season to end later than usual given these logistical challenges. “We have a lot of volume in store and we are on our way from now until the end of March,” says Beaver.

Always strong demand

Of course, in turn, demand for blueberries has been strong. "There is just less fruit available day by day and that has resulted in an increase in demand overall," says Beaver. That said, blueberries have done well as a staple in the pandemic. “When COVID arrived last year, we were concerned that the market would plummet and that we would have trouble moving perishable goods. But in the last year we have seen strong demand quite consistently. This increase in retail grocery shopping and online shopping has helped keep demand pretty steady, ”says Beaver, adding that as part of that, consumers have also been interested in larger packages of blueberries this year.

Given the limited supply and high demand, a market with high prices has been created, especially in the spot market. “Everything I have is already compromised or I could sell it all in one phone call. Everybody is watching and there's not so much there now, ”says Beaver. “The price has risen considerably in the last two weeks and hopefully that holds, as Peru withdrew from the deal a little earlier than expected. This benefits Chilean and Mexican producers and exporters ”.

Looking ahead, Beaver notes that peak volumes from Chile should arrive in the next week and continue through early March. “We think there will be a lot of strong market opportunities and we anticipate that prices and demand will be quite strong,” he says. “That being said, if things suddenly open up and there is all sorts of volume coming this way, we will have to respond. We are taking it day by day with incoming arrivals."