Despite achieving record exports in volume and fob values, Chilean stone fruit faced several challenges in the 2023-2024 season. Chile's stone fruit sector includes Japanese plums, European plums (Sugar Plums), nectarines, peaches, and damasks. Exports to China, the main market, increased by 25% in volume but only by 5% in fob value. In contrast, exports to the United States decreased by 1% in volume but increased by 20% in value.
"This season our shipments of fresh stone fruit achieved an important milestone, after exporting a record 36.5 million boxes abroad, i.e. 18% more volume than in the previous year. The export value increased by 14% totalling $519 million. This growth is marking a new time and recovery for Chile's stone fruit industry," stated Iván Marambio, president of Frutas de Chile.
Japanese plums experienced a 24% growth, followed by nectarines (14%), and European plums (23%). Peaches and damasks also showed variations in their export volumes.
Ignacio Caballero, executive director of Frutas de Chile's Stone Fruit Committee, highlighted the recovery in volume, the new momentum of the sector, and the work of the recently formed Stone Fruit Committee. However, he said, there are still challenges, especially in China. China, the United States, and Brazil were the main markets for Japanese plums. Almost the entire volume of European plums was sent to China.
The nectarines' main destinations were China, the United States, and the Netherlands. The growth of white-pulp nectarines stood out. The peaches' main destination markets were the United States, Mexico, and Brazil. The opening of the Chinese market was a great milestone.
"Regarding fob values, our stone fruit exports have ranked second place globally in the 2014-2023 period; where Chilean fresh plums stand out, remaining in first place globally in fob values," the Committee's executive director stated. "There are important opportunities for stone fruit because it is a category that is growing worldwide, especially in value and price. Therefore, carrying out promotional campaigns to promote consumption and highlight their health attributes is key to continue positioning our stone fruits, especially in Asia, their main market," he added.
Source: simfruit.cl