Chile stands as the largest exporter of table grapes in the world, and yet the majority of the varieties that the country exports – Red Globe, Thompson Seedless, Flame Seedless, Crimson, Sugraone – did not in fact originate in Chile, but in the US.
However, thanks to the work of the Consorcio Tecnologica de la Fruta, an association between the country’s producers, exporters, the Catholic University of Chile (PUC) and the Chilean Exporters’ Association (ASOEX), this is soon about to change.
“The aim is to develop grapes that are seedless, well defined in colour, large and crunchy, with a low production cost, good post-harvest resistance and good timing for harvesting,” said Maria Consuelo Medina, biologist at PUC.
“Resistant plants are great to reduce spending on fungicides and labour, while also decreasing environmental damage and increasing fruit quality,” she explained.
Ease of picking is also more than an after-thought. “We prefer the bunches to be a bit loose so they are less compact and there is air between the fruit,” said Medina. “This helps to limit instances of fungus and reduces the amount of labour needed, as less pruning is required.”
Perhaps most important of all is storage time. New varieties are tested for their ability to travel by being placed in coldstorage for 40 days and then examined. “If they do well, then they can clearly travel to all export markets,” said Medina, referring to Chile’s furthest but perhaps most promising market, China.
The Consorcio Tecnologica de la Fruta currently runs five programmes, according to coordinator Fernanda Alvarez, for grapes, raspberries, stonefruit, apples and cherries, with the grape programme beginning in 2007.
“We are developing our own grape varieties because we have our own requirements,” said Alvarez, “not least the post-harvest life of the fruit. Longer shelf life is crucial for us due to the long distance our fruit must travel. All the varieties are designed specifically for our climatic and post-harvest needs. This aids our own competitiveness. The industry tells us we need our own varieties in order to compete. Three years from now, we will have the first varieties for producers to start trialling in their own fields.”
“Argentina, South Africa and Australia are our main competitors during the December-to-March period,” added Dr Patricio Arce Johnson, professor at PUC. “We imagine that, in the future, these countries may be using varieties developed here.”
And why wouldn’t they? In six years’ time, according to Dr Johnson, the programme expects to create a fungi-resistant grape. “We are a leader in this effort,” he said. “We see the opportunity to develop grapes that require zero fungicides. This is something we think consumers will appreciate.”
