This week, Global Plant Genetics announced the licensing of two new nurseries in Argentina: Kleppe S.A. and Vivero Altus. The requirement for improved-quality strawberry plants continues to increase across Latin America, with volumes rising alongside the development of new varieties from the University of California breeding program, which are managed in LATAM by GPG.
Both nurseries will propagate existing "legacy" varieties such as San Andreas and Fronteras, and introduce replacement varieties in the near future. Focus includes three day-neutral varieties, UCD Royal Royce, UC Eclipse, and UC Golden Gate, offering improvements over San Andreas and Monterey. The day-neutral variety UCD Moxie is performing in Chile as an improvement to Monterey.
© Global Plant Genetics
Vivero Altus is a newly formed nursery based in El Maitén, Patagonia, owned by Laureano Delarmelina and Juan Vilar. Both have experience in strawberry nursery management and fruit production and are supported by Juan's father, Ángel Vilar, who has served as a technical advisor to several of Argentina's strawberry plant producers.
Kleppe S.A. is entering the strawberry nursery sector and is known as one of Argentina's two largest fruit exporters. The company is located in Neuquén, in the Río Negro Valley, where it employs 3,700 people across 9,000 hectares dedicated to fruit production for export to more than 40 countries.
Rupert Hargreaves of Global Plant Genetics said the timing aligns with growers seeking improved varieties and plant quality. He added that growers throughout Latin America, as well as retailers and processors, are looking for new strawberry varieties. Varieties developed by the University of California account for more than 90% of the Latin American strawberry market, and replacements for San Andreas and Fronteras from this program will enter the market.
Laureano Delarmelina said: "I have followed the new varieties from GPG and the University of California extensively over the last five years, travelling to see them in nine different countries. It is very clear that the new replacement varieties offer significant improvements in areas such as yield, disease resistance, and shelf life. While we will continue to support growers by producing plants of some legacy varieties, we have plans in place to rapidly expand plant numbers of the new varieties in order to meet anticipated grower demand in each country."
Pablo Kleppe, owner of Kleppe S.A., said: "From the outset, this opportunity looked like an exciting business prospect for my company. My team conducted an in-depth analysis of the industry, and we believe strongly that, with our existing assets, including high-quality sandy land in the right location, multiple warehouses, and extensive cold storage facilities, we are well placed to produce significant volumes of high-quality plants for the Latin American market.
© Global Plant GeneticsFor more information:
Global Plant Genetics
Tel: +44 (0) 1485 210091
Email: [email protected]
www.globalplantgenetics.com
