Jorge Valenzuela, chairman of the Chilean fruit producer's federation Fedefruta stated, "cherries drive the expansion of Chilean fruit export. Grapes are facing changes, but their sales volume is stable. The export volume of dried fruit increased to 34%." According to his predictions, China will remain the largest export market for Chilean fruit in 2020. Valenzuela also stated, "although current social trends still encourage a healthy development of the Chilean fruit export and distribution, some investors are already turning their attention to Peru and Colombia."
Fedefruta recently examined the impact of the drought on Chilean fruit production. Grapes suffered the most from the drought, in particular in the Coquimbo Region and the Valparaiso Region. Some apples and pears in other production areas also suffered from the drought. "If these conditions continue, then we may have to sacrifice some less profitable products for the sake of more profitable products," explained Valenzuela.
Source: br-cn.com