Producers and exporters of prunes have good expectations for the 2017 season. Producers expect to achieve a better quality, in terms of size and concentration of sugar, than in the previous year, due to the good climatic conditions there were in spring 2016. In addition, Chile is in a better position than its direct competitors, the US and Argentina, within the international context.
"We'll have a normal season in terms of volume. We expect to produce 75,000 to 80,000 tons. The season will start about one week earlier than usual, but we expect our plums to have a good concentration of sugar so we'll be able to ensure a better quality of fruit," said Andres Rodriguez, CEO of Chile Prunes.
This favorable scenario will help producers rebound from the low prices they achieved last year. According to data from Odepa, between January and October 2016 the prunes exported were worth US $2.3 per kilo. In the same period of 2015, they fetched US $3.2 per kilo.
Prices dropped because of the poor quality of fruit obtained due to climatic issues that year.
Jesus de la Riva, president of Chile Prunes said that the temperatures in spring 2015 were irregular, so the production wasn't homogeneous and the fruit calibers were small.
"There was fruit with lots of sugar and others with very little sugar, so the production harvested wasn't ideal. Since the fruit was small, it had less pulp. Then, when we dried it, it had much less meat," said De la Riva.
As a results, exports were also affected. Revenues from the sale of prunes between January and October 2016 amounted to US $129 million, i.e. 21% less than in the same period of the previous year, when they amounted to more than 163 million dollars (FOB).
Federico Montes, general manager of Prunesco, said that consumers in general, especially those in the most sophisticated markets, prefer a good sized fruit. As a result, the markets, especially the most sophisticated ones, stopped buying Chilean fruits.
In addition, market prices are set according to the fruit's size: the larger the fruit, the higher the price that the international markets will pay for it. So, as producers had a lower production volume and achieved low prices, the profitability of the last season wasn't good.
Better calibers in 2017
According to experts, this year's plum season will be better in all aspects. Andres Rodriguez said that the quality would be better because the temperatures in spring of 2016 were stable, which allowed the plant and its flowering to develop normally; therefore, sizes will be higher than in the last year.
According to Federico Montes, this year, the fruit will be medium and large. Thus, he said, prices should be better than last year. Prices should also increase because the other producing countries have reduced their volumes.
Historically, the United States, Chile, France and Argentina have occupied the top positions in the world ranking of countries producing and exporting prunes. Chile's main direct competitors are the United States, because of its production volume, and Argentina, as their fruit is very similar to the Chilean fruit.
In recent seasons, the state of California, in the United States, has lowered its production due to weather problems, such as rain and frost in the flowering period.
According to data provided by Chilean Prunes, California's production in August 2016 decreased by 58% over the same period of 2015. This situation will be favorable for Chile, as there will be less fruit on the market. The United States exports 50% of its production, while Chile exports 90%.
This summer's weather conditions in Argentina could affect the crop. Jesus de la Riva said that it had hailed recently, and that the hailstones had affected the fruits in the trees, which could affect the production volume and its quality.
"This could be a good year for Chile. Our closest competitors won't have the volumes needed to supply their markets, so there is a good chance to have more international buyers and prices will probably increase," de la Riva said.
Source: Revista del Campo