The Morocco Blueberry Conference 2024 was held in Agadir on November 14, 2024, and brought together players in this rapidly expanding sector in Morocco. Over 600 participants converged on the event, according to Siham Zahidi, Co-founder & Head of Business Development of Green Smile, organizer of the conference.
The conference attracted a large number of international participants, including many from Spain and the Netherlands, as well as players from other continents, alongside professionals in the Moroccan blueberry production and export value chain.
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The Morocco Blueberry Conference began with an update session on the blueberry market, shedding light on its promising future. Participants focused in particular on the Chinese market and Morocco as a major origin while underlining the importance of branding mastery in the soft fruit sector. The session was moderated by Thomas Drahorad from Italian Berry, with contributions from Huan Zhang from Twinkle Star Berry, Lacey Bradshaw from Twenty Degrees, and Amine Bennani from the Association Marocaine des Producteurs de Fruits Rouges.
A technical session followed to share best practices for overcoming abiotic stress, optimizing water consumption, and achieving better plant and fruit performance through light diffraction. Marcel De Jong moderated the session, with the participation of Jorge Duarte from Hortitool Consulting, Camilo Ignacio Souto Escalona from the University of Conception, and Pieter Mol from Svensson.
The third session, devoted to varietal selection and moderated by Thomas Drahorad, featured useful information on variety registration, protection, and marketing. It emphasized the importance of innovation in soft fruit production in Morocco and the necessity of mechanical harvesting in the blueberry sector. Ines Buiza from Fallcreek, Roger Horak from Ozblu, and Alfonso Lopez from Planasa spoke in the session.
Finally, the last session was devoted to operations, particularly decision-making in a sensitive sector, the importance of data, and the need to comply with hygiene standards in the blueberry industry. The session was moderated by Marcel de Jong, with the participation of Fernando Martino, international consultant, Anas Bennis from Way Beyond, and Mourade el Hassouni from FPS.