According to a report made public by the National Health Service and Food Quality (Senasa), Mendoza is the leading exporter of nuts in Argentina.. The document notes that Mendoza produced nearly 60% of the total tons sold in 2015 and that the sector's exports grew by 300% in the last five years.
According to Senasa, Mendoza exported 1,778 tons of nuts in 2015, i.e. 58, 81% of what was sold abroad. At the country level, the sector grew considerably in recent years.
Italy is the main buyer
The report stated that Italy bought 80% of the nuts exported from Mendoza, i.e. a total of 1,653 tons.
Other buyers were Myanmar (Burma) with 60 tons, Chile with 47 tons, Brazil with 6 tons, and Uruguay with 16 tons.
Walnut cultivation in Mendoza has increased in recent years. However, the main producer of walnuts in the country is Catamarca with a production of more than 6,000 tons a year. Meanwhile, Mendoza produces about 4,500 tons a year, according to the fruit census carried out by the Rural Development Institute (IDR).
According to the report from Senasa, the flow of exports reflects the local efforts to conquer markets.
Catamarca exported 179 tons; San Juan, 288 tons, and Rioja, 644 tons. These three provinces account for nearly 42% of Argentinian nut exports.
Overall growth
Mendoza's increased its nut production parallel to the sector's growth in the country. In recent years, the sector increased its export volumes and market numbers.
Argentinian nut exports increased by more than 300% since 2010, as they went from 1,015 tons in that year to 3,023 tons in 2015.
This jump places Argentina among the seven countries that sold the most nuts worldwide.
Promoting the sector
Mendoza's main nut growing area is the Valle de Uco, where adult plants yield between 3,500 and 4,000 kilograms per hectare. These are the province's most famous nuts, especially the ones from Tupungato.
Walnuts are considered one of the few fruits that are still profitable, unlike grapes, peaches, plum, pears, and apples.
Future
The provincial government's goal is to strengthen the sector's development.
To this end, Mendoza's Nut program, a space in which public and private actors, including the Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure and Energy provide financial support and technical assistance to the projects that improve the development of the sector.
The members of this cluster are developing a Competitive Improvement Plan in order to tone the sector's growth with objectives for the short, medium and long term.
Organizing the various actors so they achieve a better position in the domestic market and abroad is one of the program's main goals.
Source: diariouno.com.ar