Will it be another missed opportunity? So far, it has been a missed opportunity, but this can change. The Peruvian peach has everything to become a big success.
According to William Daga, a specialist in fruit trees in Sierra and Selva Exportadora, Peru has some 5,500 hectares of peach that produce 40 to 50,000 tons of this product a year. However, a single company needs 42 thousand tons for its juice and concentrates factory in Peru (one of the 24 factories it has around the world), so it is necessary to import the raw material from Australia, Chile, and the United States.
Currently, he said, the peaches are produced in Lima, Ancash, Ayacucho, and, to a lesser extent, in Arequipa. However, if the Peruvian authorities manage to open the Brazilian market, there's a very good chance it could also be grown in Cusco and Puno.
"If we open that market, with the potential we have in those regions, we could export the fruit through Madre de Dios, which would be spectacular for the Peruvian economy and for the people of the Peruvian highlands who can produce the peach. We must start working the Brazilian market right away," he said.
The data show that Peruvian production has remained at the same levels for a decade. However, the demand is so high that, if Peru opens the Brazilian market, one of the largest in the world for this item, industrial peach production could grow up to 15 thousand hectares.
The main thing to achieve this, said Daga, is that Senasa works on the phytosanitary protocols with the Brazilian authorities. This point is fundamental because the country already has an export experience to Ecuador and Bolivia. Three companies made legal exports to Ecuador (and other companies exported the product illegally), and there were some inconveniences with safety.
"The fruit had some problems in Ecuador, but they were solved when the Senasa and Ecuador's Agrocalidad agreed on requiring certain certifications. The issue was that the areas of Huaral and Ancash used 15 to 20 applications of pesticides and fungicides... so the buyers from Ecuador didn't want to buy products from the factories because instead of getting a peach concentrate they received a fungicide concentrate. Now producers use seven or eight applications, and there is better fruit quality," he said.
Of the total Peruvian production, up to 30% can be placed abroad; most of which is for fresh consumption. An average of 60% corresponds to the Huayco Rojo variety, while the rest corresponds to blanquillos and other varieties.
The opportunities, however, are not all abroad. The specialist of Sierra and Selva Exportadora said that Peru imports 100% of its peaches halved, from Argentina, Chile, and the United States, which indicates that it is necessary to import new industrial varieties of the fruit.
"We have also imported some varieties that are misnamed Aconcagua, which are large and easily detached from the pit; there is a huge potential there to cut into halves what's left for the canning industry, and the small specimens can be used to make pulp and concentrate; thus we can promote the industrialization of the peach business at the national level," he stated.
"We have the climate, soil, and water conditions, as well as the know-how to do it," he added.
Source: agraria.pe