Chile already has 110 hectares of Sweet Pekeetah plums, a variety developed in Chile from Japanese plums. This variety is grown in the Metropolitan, O’Higgins, and Maule regions, and has been successfully shipped to China, Taiwan, the US, and Brazil. China is its main destination with 92% of the volume sent, followed by Taiwan with 3.8% of the total volume.
The challenge now is that the markets and consumers get to know this variety, stated Rodrigo Infante, director of the Plum Genetic Improvement Program (MeCi) of the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences of the University of Chile.
"In the coming years, we expect to reach 180 hectares of Sweet Pekeetah plum in Chile. It should be noted that this fruit blooms in mid-September when the risks of frost are much lower. It is a later variety than the Angeleno variety, as it matures during the second half of February when plum production is falling,” Infante stated. “At that moment, the markets are less saturated and prices are higher.”
Sweet Pekeetah is in its third year of commercial export with shipments reaching 1,300 tons, equivalent to 185,000 boxes. “So far the feedback from the markets is positive; they've liked this plum. However, what is key in the future is to harvest it at the exact moment of maturity to be able to export it with better quality,” stated the Agricultural Engineer and Ph.D. in Research at the University of Bologna.
Since the fruit can be kept in the tree for longer, which helps the plum to accumulate more sugar and lower its acidity. “A better product will be rewarded with higher prices by consumers,” Infante stated. “We believe it will have very good results because of its characteristics,” he added.
Neofresh, Dole, Greenvic, Chilfresh, some of the firms that are part of MeCi and that bet on Sweet Pekeetah, all agree that this variety has a good postharvest, good sweetness, large caliber and that it works well for 50-60 days after its harvest.
Source: redagricola.com