The Sierra Exportadora Program plans a project to install, via the Berries-Cajamarca regional project, 600 acres of raspberries, blueberries, and pushgay in the region over a two year period.
To achieve this, Sierra Exportadora started a theoretical and practical course of agronomic raspberry crop management in the province of San Marcos, Cajamarca.
These trainings are aimed at producers and students at the Technological Institute of the province of San Marcos, in order to train specialists in the cultivation of berries, and thus achieve the goal of planting a million raspberry seedlings in the area.
This mechanism will be replicated in other provinces of Cajamarca, to reach the goal of 600 acres of berries throughout the region.
The course is conducted under the Interagency Cooperation Agreement, signed by the Technological Institute of the province of San Marcos and Sierra Exportadora.
In this regard, the head of this institution, Alfonso Velasquez Tuesta, noted that Cajamarca might become Peru's berry capital because of its excellent climatic conditions and fertile land.
Velasquez also stressed Cajamarca's potential for the optimal development of raspberry and other berries.
These qualities allow producers to form a regional cluster, which will reduce costs in the supply chain and especially promote the industrialization of the department.
Randy Barreto, chief of Sierra Exportadora Cajamarca, said the specialization course had been co-financed by the Fund for Innovation, Science and Technology (FINCyT) and the private enterprise, which is responsible for the marketing, processing and export of berries.
A group of Chilean specialists, led by Edgardo Weisse, who has over 25 years experience in the development of the berries' productive chain, will be training the participants and giving them information on the latest developments in the cultivation of berries.
The Multisectoral Berry Labour Bureau was established in May this year, in the City of Cajamarca; representatives of the Chamber of Commerce of Cajamarca, the regional government, the Municipality of Cajamarca, AGROIDEAS, AGROBANCO, INIA, including public, private and academic entities, compose the Bureau.
Source: andina.com.pe