Argentina exported 1.53m tonnes of fresh fruit during 2008, worth some US$1.25bn – a decrease of 2 per cent in volume and a growth of 33 per cent in value compared with the year earlier, according to figures just released by Senasa, Argentina’s agriculture, food safety and quality agency.
Apples and pears accounted for 705,747 tonnes (or US$501m) of the total, registering a decline of 5 per cent in volume and an increase of 18 per cent in value in comparison to 2007.
The bulk of the apple crop was shipped to Russia (which absorbed 71,734 tonnes), followed by Brazil, the Netherlands, Algeria, Belgium, Spain and Sweden. Brazil ranked the leading destination for pears, accounting for 122,214 tonnes. Russia, Italy, the US and other European nations absorbed the balance.
Citrus shipments last year totalled 691,946 tonnes at a value of US$528m, which represented a 1 per cent growth in volume and 68 per cent jump in value against 2007 figures, when the South American country exported 685,653 tonnes of citrus.
Lemons accounted for the bulk of Argentina’s citrus crop at 406,278 tonnes (US$361m) and registered a 13 per cent rise in volume and 124 per cent increase in value over 2007. Again, Russia took the majority of shipments with 80,069 tonnes, followed by western European nations.
Grape exports, meanwhile, reached some 71,378 tonnes in 2008, worth US$86m. Argentina’s main markets last year included Russia, the Netherlands, Belgium, Brazil, Germany and Spain, among others.
