Andina

Peru: Agricultural exports reach record high of US$10.421 billion in 2022

Photo: ANDINA/ Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation of Peru

Photo: ANDINA/ Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation of Peru

15:00 | Lima, Feb. 9.

Peru's agricultural exports reached a record high of US$10.421 billion in 2022, a 13.6% growth compared to the sales recorded in 2021, the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (Midagri) reported on Thursday.

Between January and December last year, traditional agricultural exports amounted to US$/1.340 billion, up 58.9% from 2021, due to higher shipments of unroasted coffee without decaffeination, which totaled US$1.221 billion and accounted for 91.1% of the total —a new high that had not been witnessed since 2012, when there were problems due to the presence of yellow rust.

Moreover, exports of refined cane or beet sugar, which amounted to US$72 million and made up 5.4% of total traditional agricultural exports, as well as sales of other cane sugar (US$11 million; 0.8%), also stood out in this period.

Meanwhile, non-traditional agricultural exports totaled US$9.080 billion, an increase of 9% compared to 2021.

The products that stood out in the agricultural-exports ranking in said period were fresh cranberries, which totaled US$1.364 billion and accounted for 15% of total sales, fresh grapes (US$1.364 billion; 15%), avocados (US$895 million; 9.9%), and fresh or chilled asparagus (US$372 million; 4.1%).

Other products that stood out in the ranking include fresh mangoes, whose sales amounted to US$301 million and made up 3.3% of the total, animal feed (US$264 million; 2.9%), other citrus fruits (US$178 million; 2%), other cacao beans (US$159 million; 1.7%), ethyl alcohol (US$157 million; 1.7%), frozen mangoes (US$148 million; 1.6%), artichokes (US$129 million; 1.4%), and crude palm oil (US$125 million; 1.4%).

Destination markets

On the other hand, the main destinations for Peruvian products were the United States, the Netherlands, Spain, Ecuador, China, England, Germany, Chile, Mexico, and Colombia. Together, these countries accounted for 77.1% of the total value exported in 2022.

Thus, Agrarian Development-Irrigation Minister Nelly Paredes highlighted the extraordinary performance of national agriculture and agricultural exports in 2022, despite the challenges caused by the increase in the price of fertilizers and the severe drought, which affected various regions across the country.

The Cabinet member noted that last year's figures for agricultural exports confirm Peru as an important supplier of food to the main markets around the world, mainly driven by small farmer organizations.

(END) NDP/CNA/RMB/MVB

Published: 2/9/2023