Jorge Retamales: A quick look at the Latin American blueberry industry
Jorge Retamales is an Agronomist from the University of Chile, mentioning Fruit and Vineyards, Master of Science and Doctorate from Michigan State University. He works as an academic and researcher and is the author of a long history of individual and collective works and publications.
Professor Retamales was part of the speakers who participated in the International Seminars held in June in Mexico, Peru and Argentina, where he spoke about pruning in blueberries, a topic that Professor Retamales has researched in depth in the last decade and which is of great importance to the producers.
We talked with him to find out his opinion regarding the course of seminars held and he stopped first to highlight the organization, "which improved substantially compared to last year, "then also stressed the structure," which was adequate in terms of the length of the exhibitions, compliance with the times, question and answer sessions, etc.".
It would be important to also know your opinion in relation to what is missing or left over in the curriculum, facing the 2018.
I think it would be necessary to expand to other issues that have not yet been addressed. Irrigation, harvest, orchard design, growth regulators, use of mulch, weed control, use of meshes and covers (tunnels, greenhouses), among others.
Mexico and Peru
The first destination was Guadalajara, Mexico, of which Professor Retamales thinks it is an industry that has been growing with great force. Ensures that there are many new developments in different locations and with different plant material (varieties). Regarding his visit to Lima, Peru, he warns that the situation of Peru in many ways is similar to that of Mexico in terms of environmental conditions, plant material and rate of industry growth in recent years. "Both have high yields, very early production in the life of the garden and a wide coverage of the market in terms of availability of fruit in the season”. He emphasizes that the great strength of Mexico is its proximity to the US market. However, the great weakness of both industries is the low importance they assign to their own research. The academic emphasizes that the research entities have, in general, little connection with the industry in these countries. It ensures that companies try to carry out research each one separately. "Many times they investigate the same issues, but they do not interact with each other and they lack the availability of researchers, laboratories and equipment to adequately address the solution of the problems that afflict them. This could lead to problems in the future, which could translate into very heterogeneous quality and condition of fruit reaching the markets, especially now that both countries are sending or about to start shipments to distant markets (Asia), with which the heterogeneity of the Fruit should increase, for the longer postharvest period required to reach those markets. More than a country approach, it is observed in both cases that there is a confrontation situation per company with little interaction between companies, as well as between companies and researchers"He says.
"For the size of these industries, they should already be preparing the research teams that serve the entire industry."Warns the academic.
Argentina
Argentina is a different case, it starts analyzing, because "Until recently they had a niche or market window in which they had little competition, but as Manuel Alcaíno made clear in his talk, the windows are disappearing with the emergence of Mexico and especially Peru. These countries, with the varieties, productive areas and management in the orchard, can to some extent adjust the fruit production curve and with it the arrival of fruit to the markets.”. The researcher affirms that Peru and Mexico produce earlier and for a longer period in the season, considering their externally attractive fruit and assures that these countries are rapidly increasing the planted area and export volumes.
Remember that just last year the situation became a crisis, which is forcing Argentines to increase yields and lower production costs. "Producers who cannot change quickly, or with the magnitude that the situation requires, could be forced to exit the market in the near future. As I pointed out at the end of the seminar, in times of crisis like the one they face, it is very important to consider two issues: 1) research: this can increase yields and lower costs, 2) association: try to share ideas , proposals and solutions, trying to homogenize and increase the quality of the blueberries they produce so that they are reliable as suppliers for the countries of the Northern Hemisphere", Concludes the Chilean academic.
Source: Martín Carrillo O. - Blueberries Consulting
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June 2017 Agroclimatic BulletinARTÍCULOS RELACIONADOS
