Michoacan produces 95 percent of the blackberries that are exported and sent to the national market. According to data provided by experts in the sowing and production of this fruit, which currently has a high demand in the foreign market, Mexico produces about 248 thousand tons of blackberry a year and the crops established in this municipality and in Los Reyes, alone, produce 120 thousand tons per year.
In this regard, Jorge Zarate Castañeda, a producer of blackberries who manages at least ten hectares of citrus crops in this municipality, said that there was an average of 5,164 hectares devoted to blackberry production, including, of course, the crops established in the neighboring municipality of Los Reyes," as Periban produces at least 49 thousand tons of blackberry per year on approximately 2 thousand hectares."
He said that the cultivation and production of blackberries in both municipalities generated at least 11,500 jobs for day laborers in the fields, which has revitalized the regional economy. "Up until a few years ago, for example in Los Reyes, the majority of the producers in the field were dedicated to sowing, harvesting and exporting sugar cane, which has been displaced by blackberries," he said.
Meanwhile, Francisco Cabrera Cantero, a field worker, said that he earned between 1,500 and 2,000 pesos a week for his work in the blackberry fields, depending on the activities that he had to carry out during the cutting and packing season. He also emphasized that this was seasonal work that only took place twice a year or every six months, when there was a blackberry harvest, which currently yields good economic dividends to those who are dedicated to exploit this type of crop in the region.
Source: cbtelevision.com.mx