Hernán Garcés, executive director of Garces Fruit, the largest exporter of cherries in the world that has more than 2,000 hectares located in the regions of Valparaiso and Maule, stated in an interview with Simfruit that he expects the company's production to be "similar to the previous season. We plan to reach 60,000 tons," he said.
During the Cherry Blossom event organized in Requinoa by the Cherry Committee of ASOEX, which formalized the start of the new cherry season, he said that in recent years the company has been preparing for the opening of new markets in China: going inland, looking for customers who didn't use to sell cherries and trying to sell the product beyond the main markets. "We've worked a lot with the main retailers and e-commerce in China, with whom we have formed strategic alliances to develop future programs," he added.
Regarding the promotion campaign promoted by the company, which represents 10% of the Chilean market share, the executive director said: "Garcés Fruit is headed in the same direction as the Cherry Committee. We make the investment together as an industry in different markets in China. We support our retail partners and do a couple of promotions for our brand, but the fundamental thing is the investment of the Cherry Committee and what we do together as an industry."
Regarding the diversification of markets, Garcés said, "India still doesn't have adequate logistics for fresh fruit, so we still haven't diversified to that market yet. We have been diversifying, but the relative size of China is irreplaceable. We see growth potential in cities further inland in China. These markets have been growing year by year. Five years ago, we would sell 3 to 5 pallets to these markets. Now, we're selling full containers to them, so they should continue to increase."
Source: simfruit.cl