The producer and marketer of fresh avocados, Camet Trading, will seek to increase its export volume by 20% this year by improving its productivity per hectare and adding new fields to its portfolio, stated its CEO, Enrique Camet.
"We have projects to develop experimental fields of the GEM and Carmen varieties - which have an early and late harvest, respectively - to be able to extend our production period," he said.
At the same time, he added, the company is conducting a due diligence with a major fruit producer, hoping to finalize a purchase this October.
After having concluded agreements with import and marketing companies from China, Japan and India, the company will move from exporting 50 containers of avocado to the Asian market in the present campaign to 150 containers in 2018.
Currently its most important markets are Europe (France, Spain, Germany), the United States, and it also has a presence in Latin America. Camet said they are keen to open new markets, such as South Korea, Mexico, Colombia, Australia and New Zealand, to increase shipments.
"We were the first to send Peruvian Hass avocado to New Delhi and Mumbai, and also to Argentina this year. In 2016 we led shipments to Shanghai (China) and now we are looking for new destinations," he stated.
The company, which specializes in the marketing of fresh fruit, is evaluating entering the frozen and dehydrated fruit business. It's short term goal, however, is to increase the productivity of its partners and look for new fields.
To achieve this, they will provide technical and - in some cases - financial advice to the producers with whom they work, he said.
The company, which plans to achieve sales of US $ 33 million in this year's campaign (20% more than in 2016), has a nursery in Chilca and in Cusco, and plans to open another one in Trujillo to develop their crops.
According to Enrique Camet, this year the South African company, Westphalia Fruit, became one of Camet Trading's shareholders to accelerate medium and long term strategies (investment in the company's own fields and new crops, among others), and they are already evaluating investment alternatives.
Currently 90% of their sales correspond to avocado and 10% to crops like grapes, citrus, blueberries and pomegranates, where the company also wants to grow.
Source: Gestion