In recent years farmers from various parts of the world have innovated in the shape of their products; something that producers from Chile hadn't done up until now.
A group of producers from Arica has wanted to innovate in this fruit and created the country's first squared melon. This gourmet product was developed in association with Agricola Pampa Concordia and Corfo.
"We wanted to differentiate them, and having square melons helps us in transportation and logistics. In addition, the square melon has exceptional properties as it has a longer post-harvest life, which is very important for us because we are so far from the country's central area," said the agronomist, Leandro Vasquez. Moreover, this melon has more sugars than the traditional varieties.
The Regional Director of Corfo, Claudia Opazo said that they were very happy with the results of this endeavor and glad to have trusted and bet on this project. She also said that thanks to this kind of projects producers had gradually managed to internalize the importance of associating.
These melons, however, have a high cost. While traditional melons cost on average one thousand pesos, the squared ones can cost up to 50 thousand pesos. In that sense, the fruit is developed for an international market, such as Japan, where it is considered valuable and its squared shape is an additional value, stated Juan Cardenas, a producer from Pampa Concordia.
Vasquez said that this product was mainly, though, for an exclusive public that can value living the experience of having a square melon.
Source: 24horas.cl