Peru asparagus

Peru's agricultural exports are expected to grow by 15 per cent this year following a strong start to the campaign, according to reports in the country.

According to Agraria.pe and reported by Fresh Fruit Portal, Peru's Ministry of Agriculture revealed that agricultural exports had climbed 16.6 per cent through the opening quarter of 2012 at a value of US$900m.

Exports are said to have been boosted by free trade agreements with China, Japan and the US, as well as better prices of products including asparagus, mangoes and table grapes.

In terms of importers, the US had imported the greatest volume of Peruvian produce with 23 per cent of the market, followed by the Netherlands (13 per cent), Colombia (7 per cent) Germany (6 per cent) Spain (6 per cent) and Ecuador (5 per cent).