El XXXIV International Seminar of Blueberries Consulting, which took place at the Lima Convention Center on March 12 and 13 and brought together specialist agricultural producers and businessmen from Peru and Latin America, had the presence of the Minister of Agrarian Development and Irrigation of Peru on its opening day, Angel Manero, who participated in the Conversation Panel: “The blueberry industry, current status, strategies and trends”, together with Miguel Bentín, president of Proarándanos and gabriel amaro, president of the Association of Agricultural Producers' Guilds of Peru, AGAP.

During the event, attendees had the opportunity to learn about the minister's vision for the industry, identify its challenges, and project the opportunities that will arise for Peru in the near future. The minister also took the opportunity to share with attendees the strategy the Peruvian government is developing to collaborate with blueberry producers, which focuses on three key areas: infrastructure, health, and promotion.

Regarding the first point, the minister highlighted that in Peru there will be three ports that will complement Callao, Matarani, the port of San Martín and Chacay, highlighting that the consolidation of the latter is projected for next year and that the logistical aspect would not be a limitation in the future, he also took the opportunity to announce to the private sector the actions that are being carried out in the short term, announcing that "the great news we want to give you is that an American group is going to repower the port of Matarani, so we will have Chancay, Matarani, and the port of San Martín, also there in Ica" stated the State authority.

Regarding health, the authority emphasized that there are still markets where Peruvian blueberries have not yet arrived, highlighting the importance of respecting health agreements that guarantee quality in demanding markets. He announced that this year the Ministry of Agriculture "will have 20 agricultural attachés to open blueberry markets and speed up these processes." He also added that "we have outsourced certification so that the private sector can help us certify packaging and shipments, so that we can work 24 hours a day," the minister indicated.

Regarding promotion, Minister Manero stated that "this year we are guaranteeing a new agrarian law that, among other things, will guarantee a 15% income tax for all exporters." He emphasized that "this will be important for attracting investment and ensuring the employment we need in the country."

Furthermore, when asked about the threat of increased tariffs, the minister appeared confident, assuring that “Peru is quite competitive and we will not have problems with that,” adding that the government projects three possible scenarios: “the first is that they impose tariffs, but the countries that have FTAs ​​would not be affected,” the second is that “they impose tariffs to protect the production of wheat, soybeans, corn, meat and milk, which are products that do not compete with us and therefore do not affect us,” and the third is that “all countries would be on equal terms to access the market and we believe that Peru is quite competitive, therefore we will not have problems in that regard,” said Minister Manero, as a way of highlighting the great effort of the Peruvian blueberry industry to position itself as a leader in the industry worldwide.

We look forward to seeing you at our next event, 35th International Blueberry Seminar, Chile to be held this coming April 10th.

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