Country becomes the latest market to green light imports of citrus from the Andean nation
New Zealand will become the next market to open to Peruvian citrus exports. Last week, representatives of Peru’s agriculture ministry and plant health authority held a meeting with their New Zealand counterparts at which they signed a working plan paving the way for imports of the fruit.
Under the agreement, producers from Ica, Lima, Piura, La Libertad, Junín, Arequipa, Ancash and Lambayeque will be able to send mandarins, oranges, tangelos and limes to New Zealand from this year.
Peru exported 143,410 tonnes of mandarins worth US$185m in the seven months to the end of July, representing an increase of 22 per cent in volume and 44 per cent in value, according to consultancy firm FreshFruit. Prices were up across almost all varieties, with Clemensol, Nova and Primosole registering the biggest increases.
Exporters were able to capitalise on lower volumes in the US – Peru’s biggest market – along with earlier-than-usual end to the Californian season. Total shipments to the US to July were up 54 per cent in volume, while average prices increased by almost 12 per cent.
Until last year, clementines accounted for the bulk of shipments to the US in the first half of the year. However, a big rise in shipments of Murcott (+164 per cent) made this the most exported variety in the US. In Europe, Murcott displaced Satsumas to become the number one export during the same period.
Mandarins have driven Peru’s growth as a citrus supplier to global markets in recent years. The country’s varietal portfolio has expanded and improved significantly, with varieties like Murcott, Nadorcott and Orri now making up the bulk of production. In clementines, Primosole, Orogrande and Clemensol account for a growing share of exports, while in Satsumas, plantings of varieties like Owari and Okitsu are also on the rise.
