On November 23, Odilo Duarte, PhD in Agricultural Sciences from the University of Berlin and a leading figure in Latin American fruit growing, will turn 80 years old. Throughout a lifetime devoted to fruit growing, he has managed to have a prolific and successful international career, which has led him to become a professor at universities in Peru, Honduras or Florida, and to act as consultant and advisor to important global entities, such as FAO, ITC or USAID. Nowadays, Odilo remains active in international fruit growing consultancy and is also a representative of Maluma avocado and Bounty rootstock for Latin America.
"I started from the bottom, working in the nursery of the Agrarian University-La Molina, in Lima, after I finished my agronomy degree. Later, in California, when I was studying for a master's degree in Horticulture, is when I became involved in fruit growing for life," recalls Odilo. "I have grown a large number of species thanks to the 15 years I worked in La Molina and the 20 years I worked at El Zamorano, a North American university in Honduras, from where I returned to Peru 14 years ago. In 2010, while preparing a book on tropical fruits together with a colleague from Hawaii, is when I learned about the Maluma variety."
The Peruvian avocado export industry is relatively young, according to Odilo Duarte. "In the 90s, there was actually no Hass avocado yet; only Fuerte, Nabal and Criollo avocados were produced and consumed; but in 1995 or so, a Peruvian company decided to venture into its cultivation and set up about 500 hectares of Hass avocados, thereby giving a big boost to avocado production in the country."
"We started with 500 hectares and we are currently at 60,000. Growth has been meteoric and, perhaps, too fast, because on some weeks we caused the European market to become saturated.
"The production will continue to grow, because there are still young plantations where the harvests are going to increase, but I think that there are not going to be significant expansions of the acreage in areas to be harvested in that peak window, in which up to 700 containers a week flood the European market."
"SENASA is working to allow the entry of the Maluma into the United States"
The Hass variety, which was the flagship at the time of avocado expansion in Peru -and is, in fact, the one that transformed avocado exporting in the world since Rudolph Hass discovered it by chance in his orchard-, maintains its global hegemony; however, there is still much potential for new varieties that offer agronomic improvements, alternative harvest windows and new opportunities to growing areas with climatic characteristics that are not ideal for the effective production of the Hass.
"In Peru there are already 500-600 hectares of the Maluma. In Guatemala, we have some plantations that are already bearing their first fruits this year. In Colombia, we are present in 2 nurseries in the country, as well as in Brazil, where there are plantations that have yielded excellent results. We are also working with a nursery in Argentina and another one in Paraguay, and the most important thing: SENASA is working to get approval for its entry into the United States."
His son Rodrigo Duarte said that the avocado industry could still be considered to be in the initial phase of selection and breeding. "For example, in Peru, clonal avocado has not been successful yet because we do not have the ideal clonal rootstocks for the country. New varieties, such as the Maluma, are bound to optimize the avocado industry and make it more resilient to climate change, water scarcity and soil salinization."
"The Maluma starts bearing fruit practically a year and a half after planting and achieves up to 20% more productivity than the Hass, and it also has a greater resistance to heat and cold," said Rodrigo. "With temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius, Hass avocados suffer from fruit drop or size reductions, while the Maluma is more resistant. It is important to take this into account as the climate changes, or to have an option for cultivation in areas of Latin America where West Indian avocados have traditionally been grown precisely because the heat makes it difficult to produce the Hass."
"We are testing the cultivation of cherry trees with low cold requirements brought from California"
The Maluma's prospects, as well as the tests and results conducted and achieved by the variety in different parts of the world -even in these times of climate variability-, are very promising, said Odilo, who will continue to undertake new pioneering projects, despite turning 80 years old.
"I am currently working on a general fruit growing book for university students, and my colleague from Hawaii and I are updating the first version of our publication, Tropical Fruits."
"Through Perú Frut, a nursery strongly focused on R&D that I started with a partner 12 years ago, we are also testing the cultivation of cherry trees with low cold requirements brought from California, as well as some stone fruit varieties brought from Spain that are yielding very good results. We have also brought the Rojo Brillante kaki from Spain, and it is already being exported to Europe in the off-season," said Odilo.
Rodrigo was listening attentively from South Africa, where he works at the Allesbeste avocado nursery, while his father was being video interviewed in Peru. "My dad has had a clear influence on me and on the agronomy career I've pursued. In fact, much of what I know about avocados I learned from him," he said. "It's a great privilege for me to be able to work and continue doing projects together."
For more information:
Odilo Duarte
Tel.: +51 991160054
[email protected]
www.aguacatemalumalatinoamerica.com