Puerto Coronel has bet on fresh fruit exports for the last three years. As a result, it has managed to position itself as the main terminal of the central-south zone in the transfers of these products and was ranked fourth at the National level by the Association of Fruit Exporters (Asoex) in its 2016-2017 season balance.
The commercial manager of Puerto Coronel, Rodrigo Schilling, spoke about the experience they've had with this unconventional load and the 72,257 tons of fresh fruit that they managed to export last season, which is 31.8% more than in the 2015-2016 season.
In the 2017-2018 season, i.e. from September 1 to May 31 of this year, they have managed to export 60,570 tons of fresh fruit, 27,550 tons of which were of apple shipments, 20,421 tons of pears, and 5,318 tons of blueberries.
According to the executive, multiple factors have influenced the increase of this type of exports. "These types of products are having a good moment, due to consumption worldwide. In addition, the transport technologies have allowed producers in the region of Biobio or La AraucanÃa to harvest certain products, and take advantage of the climatic conditions that have also changed. In addition, these products have good prices in destination, which allows producers to be profitable and the business to be sustainable over time," he said.
Schilling said that they had to be very attentive to how these changes are taking place. "The fields we used to have forests, will now have fruits. The containers that are now filled with wood, will one day be filled with fruits and other products, such as blueberries, apple, or berries in general. If that happens, the logistics needs at the land and port level will change. We have to be prepared for what is coming," he said.
"The installation of the USDA site has brought very positive consequences in terms of time and cost. It has been a tremendous support and helped the region progress, which can be seen in the export figures handled by Asoex and Customs. The fact that there is a fruit inspection site in Cabrero has improved the logistics of the terrestrial exporters, as the fruit that is harvested in Angol or in the province of Biobio doesn't have to be sent north to Teno to be inspected, and then be shipped out through the ports of our region or deviated towards the central zone."
Investments and cargo from Argentina
Schilling said that, even though Puerto Coronel concentrated on traditional loads, mainly of wood, the export of refrigerated cargoes, especially of fruit, had become relevant. As a result, the terminal had set up it own cold chain inspection area by the end of 2017. "It allows producers to come directly to the port and to comply with the phytosanitary requirements, both at origin and at destination, in a certified place that complies with all standards, which allows them to assure their clients at destination that the cargo will in the same conditions that it left the country. This adds security to their cargo and speeds up the export process," he said.
To enhance this space, he said, the port plans to increase the number of available plugs to handle a larger number of containers simultaneously. "We currently work with 500 rack sockets and we hope to go up to 650. We want to increase the capacity of the terminal due to the increase we expect for next season, as we've had historical peak and, therefore, have to be prepared," he said.
The increase in exports of fresh fruit has led to the arrival of cargo from other regions, such as Los Lagos and Maule. Not only from Chile, but also from Argentina which mainly exports pears through this port.
However, the transfer of cargo from Argentina is not free of difficulties, as it comes from nearly 800 kilometers away, which involves taking special safeguards. "We have focused on giving all possible flexibility to this type of cargo, so that we must manage stacking times and serve them in the best way. The good service we've delivered has made us the number one exporter of fruit from Argentina. We hope to continue growing because there is a very good potential with all the fruit that comes from the Province of Neuquen, which, due to transit reasons, is currently being sent out through Chile," the commercial manager of Puerto Coronel said.
Source: mundomaritimo.cl