Peru's current blueberry campaign is generating very good expectations. Producers even expect it will help the south of the country generate a fruit brand with characteristics that should be higher than the ones achieved in the rest of Peru. Currently 80% of the fields are of the Biloxi variety, although there are other varieties in the process of validation.
Peru is developing the cultivation of blueberries especially in the northern area of the country and, according to agronomist Alvaro Espinoza, "producers are getting good results, as almost 90% of the area of cultivation is located between the valleys of La Libertad, Lambayeque and Piura, which is an excellent area for the proliferation of blueberry."
In the south of the country this crop has been efficiently implemented for the past four years in a system of containers or pots that is being improved year after year and is allowing producers to obtain crops with the organoleptic characteristics of the area, such as the Bloom (Pruina) which has more than 15 degrees Brix and a very good crunchiness.
In the 2018-2019 campaign, producers expect to surpass the volume achieved in the previous campaigns and export 100% of the production to Asia, Europe, and the United States; however, Espinoza said, "if we do not have the proper water quality to produce blueberries, it will be impossible to reach the projected production levels of 30 tons of fruit per hectare."
According to Espinoza, "the valleys of Ica and Nazca will produce the best blueberries in the world. The group of producers currently working in Peru have approximately 200 hectares of blueberries. Their goal is to have 500 hectares, incorporating producers with potential that have their same objective, that is, producing an excellent quality fruit in a natural way; always respecting the environment."
Espinoza is currently a producer and advises a group of companies that produce blueberries under the container system. In addition, he has been advising a group of agricultural exporter companies that are interested in establishing the Association of Producers of the South of the country, and has also created a company dedicated to the construction of projects, which gives advice on the installation, management and marketing of the cultivation of berries and the export of blueberries.