The Minister of Agriculture, Antonio Walker reported that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA for its acronym in English) completed the consultation process of the system approach for blueberries from the Biobío and Ñuble regions, thus ending the process and opens this great market for producers from both regions

The agricultural authority highlighted the negotiations carried out and said that “we have been negotiating the system approach with the United States for 4 years and we are very happy that today it is approved for the blueberries from Ñuble and Biobío. In these regions we have the highest proportion of organic blueberries in Chile and by having the approved system approach, this fruit will not lose its condition ”.

“Chile exports about US $ 550 million in blueberries and 55% of the national production goes to the United States. This is, without any doubt, very good news for Ñuble, for Biobío, for the Chilean fruit industry and also for this Step-by-Step plan for the economic recovery of Chile ”, added Minister Walker.

The national director of the Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG), Horacio Bórquez, said that “we have made a great effort to re-enter the United States without the fumigation of methyl bromide. This will return to many producers the possibility of exporting, and their organic status to another significant number of producers, with the competitive advantage that that means. This is how we have been permanently pending and leading the negotiations with APHIS, the North American health authority, and we are about to fulfill this desire of the sector, waiting for the publication of the final standard at any time, providing our producers with better competitive conditions .

The president of the Association of Fruit Exporters of Chile (ASOEX), Ronald Bown, also highlighted that "this is very positive news and is expected by the blueberry sector, as it will allow consumers to reach better quality and condition fruit. , by replacing fumigation with a source inspection system. In addition, it offers a very good possibility to reactivate exports of organic blueberries from the Ñuble and Biobío regions to the United States market ”.

“The area planted with blueberries in Ñuble and Biobío totals 5.965 hectares and represents 33% of the national total. We estimate that at least 50% of that area will be able to opt for this alternative this season, if they choose the US market We appreciate the efforts of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Agricultural and Livestock Service, the Embassy and Agricultural Attaché of Chile in the United States , and the Undersecretariat of International Economic Relations. The news comes at a very propitious time, since the harvests in those areas are about to start, ”Bown closed.

For her part, the national director of the Office of Agrarian Studies and Policies (Odepa), María Emilia Undurraga, appreciated this advance in terms of exports, especially for organic production. “This has been a process of more than four years of negotiations between the health authorities of Chile and the United States, representing a great effort and collaboration of the public and private sectors. In addition, poverty in the Ñuble region doubles the national average, which places it as the second poorest in the country and the main income of this region comes from agriculture, so this news fills us with joy and hope for its people, especially at such a difficult time for Chile, ”said Undurraga. 

The system approach is a set of pest risk management measures that ensures the conditions imposed by the United States as an alternative to methyl bromide fumigation. The fumigation with methyl bromide decreases the quality of the fruit and therefore a loss of competitiveness against competitors who do not have to fumigate.