Representatives of Chile’s fresh produce industry including Asoex president Ronald Bown are part of a presidential visit to the US by Chilean premier Michelle Bachelet and agriculture minister Carlos Furche.
On Monday Bachelet was due to lead a session of the United Nations Security Council before moving on with the group on Tuesday to visit the port of Wilmington. There, she will meet with Jack Markell, the governor of Delaware and other state authorities and local companies, before travelling to Philadelphia for a meeting with the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.
During the visit, Bachelet will have the chance to take stock of the impact of the Chilean-US Free Trade Agreement. Since coming into effect in 2004, Chilean exports to the US have tripled and its imports have increased six-fold. On 1 January a zero per cent tariff was introduced on for all US imports of Chilean products covered by the agreement.
“This is the first time a Chilean president has visited these places and it gives the industry an opportunity to showcase the work we have done, together with the government, to raise the profile of our fruit in the US and to further increase our presence here,” Bown said.
“The US is our biggest export market and last season it imported more than 750,000 tonnes of Chilean fruit, with table grapes, apples, blueberries, cherries, citrus and avocados being the main products.”
Between them, the ports of Philadelphia and Wilmington unloaded 424,940 tonnes of the Chilean fruit during the 2013/14 season, making them the main point of entry for the Andean nation. A further 169,650 tonnes was shipped to the port of Los Angeles, 39,801 tonnes to Long Beach and 29,410 tonnes to the Port of Miami.
