In 2020, Peruvian exports of blueberries amounted to US$1.020 billion, up 23.4% compared to 2019 (US$826 million), when the Andean country became
the world's largest supplier of this fruit, outpacing Chile, the Association of Peruvian Exporters' Global Business and Economy Research Center (Cien-Adex) reported on Friday.
The Cien-Adex Commercial Intelligence coordinator, Lizbeth Pumasunco, explained that blueberries have shown impressive growth since their inclusion in the Peruvian export basket more than ten years ago.
"We have an advantage between August and November, because crops are not grown during these months in the case of the United States and Canada as it is winter, and in the case of Chile and Mexico because the blueberry campaign has not started by that time," she pointed out.
Although this favours Peru, she said, it is essential to continue promoting good practices to produce top-quality fruits.
In this sense, Pumasunco noted that players in this chain must be trained and informed of the characteristics of this fruit's production, which vary in each area.
In 2020, the main exporting regions of this berry were La Libertad (57%), Lambayeque (20%), and Lima (12%).
Demand for blueberries
In 2019, global exports of this berry amounted to US$8.101 billion. The United States was the main destination, with a share of 25.5% (US$2.069 billion), followed by the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
"Peru was the United States' largest supplier of fresh blueberries, with a share of 38.1%, other important ones included Chile (25.4%) and Mexico (22%)," she added.
(END) NDP/CNA/RMB
Published: 3/26/2021