Did you know that Chile is one of the main exporters of fruit globally?
Published on 29 March 2022
The Chilean agribusiness has not stopped growing despite having begun to take advantage of the opening of trade and investment. Interact with the graphics in the article and discover for yourself what are the main opportunities for Chilean fruits in the world.
To talk about successful experience in fruit exports from Latin America is to talk about Chile. The performance of shipments abroad has been positive despite adverse circumstances. The diversification of supply has continued. We have continued to exploit opportunities in Asian markets, particularly China. In short, things have been on the right track and management has been exemplary for the global agricultural industry.
Do you want details with figures to better understand the positioning of fruit sales from this country abroad? In the following points we analyze them through interactive graphs that will allow you to know in an objective way the performance of the last five years, both in terms of products and markets.
American giant: U.S. purchases exceed China's by more than 50%.
The United States has been the market that has driven the expansion of modern agribusiness, both in the development of knowledge and in access to consumers. On the Chilean side, the first impulse came with the policy of economic liberalization initiated in 1973. The second major boost came 30 years later, when the government signed the Free Trade Agreement with the United States in 2003. With all this, the country was at the forefront of the generation of competitive advantages, and generated a precedent replicated in other areas such as Peru and Colombia.
And along the same lines, the connection with the European Union and China, with which trade agreements were signed in 2002 and 2005, respectively, was taken advantage of. With all this, what is the current positioning of the main markets for Chilean fruit and what products are sold to each of them? In this chart you can compare the figures for each country, and even filter the list of those you want to analyze to obtain images tailored to your needs.
China grows: from being on par to doubling European purchases in five years
However, it is worth asking how long it took for each destination to consolidate a certain position in the portfolio of Chilean exporters. Could it be that some large market has gained ground in recent years?
Let us take a look at the following graphs:
Cherry: the recent star
When we analyze the evolution of exports of the main fruits over time, we can clearly see the cyclical quality of the product according to planting and harvesting. This allows us to find windows of opportunity that complement these periods when competing with producers from the rest of the world.
Grapes have been the predominant crop in recent years and are harvested between December and April. However, cherry sales are growing in response to Chinese demand, particularly from high purchasing power (the term cherry freedom is used as a synonym for conspicuous consumption). Will they soon become the main product?
The value is in..
Let us now look at the importance of value. The cherry experience shows that the goal should be to do more with less, as has indeed been achieved with cherry and nuts, as shown in the graph below with the measurement in US$/kg. What other product is low in weight, but high in value? Perhaps that is the key to where to look to find the next window of opportunity.
And you, what other questions do you have? Do you want to know about each shipment? Or maybe you want to evaluate how your competitors are doing through a company or country level analysis? In our online business intelligence platform you can go one step further and keep track of your product, destination or origin of interest. Request your free trial by registering at this link.