Ten days after heavy rains and hailstorms in the south central zone of Chile, the President of the Association of Fruit Exporters of Chile AG (ASOEX), Ronald Bown Fernandez, delivered a new damage report for the fruit sector.
The leader said they estimated low losses in very limited areas, in the volumes of blueberries, cherries, pits, kiwis, and table grapes. "However, he said, we know and regret that there were producers who lost all or almost all of their production. The agricultural sector, and the fruit sector in particular, depend on climate conditions. Adverse situations, such as the ones we experienced, especially in a key period for some species, are undoubtedly serious," Bown said.
"We estimate our sector had losses of 120 to 150 million dollars," the union leader added.
Regarding blueberries, the Executive Director of the Chilean Blueberry Committee -ASOEX, Andres Armstrong, said that the Region of O'Higgins was the most affected area, with damages reported in different orchards. "However, the impact on exports would be comparatively low, as the area devoted to blueberries in this region only accounts for 7% of Chile's total production. However, we should keep in mind that there were reports of hail in some areas that have more areas devoted to blueberries between the Maule Region and the mountain range, in the communes of Longavi, Parral, and Retiro. The damage in the other regions were smaller."
The representative added that, "according to preliminary assessments made these days, about 2,000 hectares of blueberries, from the Metropolitan Region to the south, could have some damage. The export volume is estimated will decrease by 4,200 tons, for fallen fruits or a higher discard due to the effect of bruising. Thus, there would be a reduction of approximately 4%, and fresh exports would decrease from 105,000 tons, initially estimated, to 100,800 tons. This is a small figure, but it is focused on the early and mid-season production, which will impact shipments from weeks 46 to 48."
During week 46, Armstrong said, Chile exported a total of 625 tons of blueberries, 66% to North America, 24% to Asia, and 10% to Europe. To date, shipments amount to 1,905 tons, i.e. 14% more than by the same week of last year. Meanwhile, organic blueberries account for 41% of total exports; North America is the main destination with a 99% share.
According to the second estimate of ASOEX's Cherry Committee, made on November 16, there will be a -10.5% decrease in the aggregate export volume of cherries this season over the previous season. As such, the Committee believes the hailstones last week had a -7.1% impact on the estimated volume. Thus, the aggregate exported volume is expected to amount to 33,446,491 boxes of 5 kg, or 167,232 tons. This estimate was made based on information from 54 companies that accounted for 80% of the export industry last season.
Fernando Sat, the Chairman of ASOEX's Table Grapes Committee, said that "in general, the number of lost boxes was not very relevant. Even though we still don't have an exhaustive quantification, we do know that the losses will be quite limited given the period that this happened and because the impact on grapes mainly focused on the Sixth Region, from the road to the mountain range."
Sat also said that they projected a slight drop, no bigger than 2%, for the 2018-2019 table grape season. However, he said, this decrease would not be due to hail, but, mainly, to the varietal change that this industry is conducting. "There will be a significant decrease in traditional varieties that no longer have a market, such as the Flame, Thompson, and Superior varieties, which will also cause an increase in patented varieties. We hope that the first ship with Chilean grapes departs between week 48 and 49. We have no hurry to leave earlier, as there is still fruit from California and Peru in the market."
Finally, the Chairman of the Chilean Kiwi Committee, Carlos Cruzat, said that after the technical teams visited the damaged areas and orchards, they ratified the first damage forecast, which was estimated at 5%. However, Cruzat said that what they were very concerned about the negative impact that the hail would have on next season's production, as a result of damaged wood and defoliation that will affect the crop's fertility.