In Chile, about US $ 550 million in blueberries are exported and 55% of the national production goes to the United States. An important boost for the Chilean fruit growing sector and also within the Step by Step plan for the country's economic recovery.

A relevant data for the area, since the blueberry area is one of the most important at the regional level, reaching 1.941 hectares. Of these, more than 90% are in the Province of Biobío.

This is why Minagri reported that the United States Department of Agriculture completed the consultation process for the systems approach for blueberries from the Biobío and Ñuble regions, thus opening up a large market for producers from both regions.

The Minister of Agriculture, Antonio Walker, said that “we have been negotiating the systems approach with the United States for 4 years and we are very happy that it is approved for the Biobío and Ñuble blueberries. In those regions we have the highest proportion of organic blueberries in Chile and by having this agreement, that fruit will not lose its condition ”.

The systems approach is a set of pest risk management measures that guarantee the conditions imposed by the United States as an alternative to methyl bromide fumigation. This disinfection helps to reduce the quality of the fruit and therefore a loss of competitiveness against competitors who do not have to spray.

In this sense, the national director of the Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG), Horacio Bórquez, pointed out 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 condition of organic to another important 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 conditions of competitiveness, ”added Bórquez.

For his part, the president of the Association of Fruit Exporters of Chile (ASOEX), Ronald Bown, valued that "this is very positive news and expected by the blueberry sector, as it will allow us to arrive with fruit of better quality and condition to consumers, by replacing fumigation with an inspection system at source ”.

Biobio 

This system will allow farms that are not in the control area of ​​the Lobesia botrana pest, better known as the vine moth, to export their production without the need for fumigation with methyl bromide.

The Seremi of Agriculture, Francisco Lagos, stressed that “this is great news for the fruit sector in our region. The government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, worked hard to get the United States to approve the systems approach. This will allow Biobío blueberries to enter without fumigation of methyl bromide ”.

"It is important to highlight that blueberry exports led the agricultural sector of the Biobío Region with sales of over 87 million dollars during 2019, according to data from Prochile based on figures from the National Customs Service," said Lagos.

While the Regional Director of SAG de Biobío, Iván Ramírez, appreciated the announcement and specified that it will benefit blueberry producers in the region, who are already working on meeting the requirements of the US market.

He also stressed that producers could inspect their fruit at the SAG Phytosanitary Inspection Site in order to reduce costs and travel time.