US fresh fruit exports increased by 10 per cent in value terms during the first seven months of 2012, while imports of fresh fruit into the US market rose by 8 per cent, according to statistics from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and reported by The Packer.
Conversely, US vegetable exports declined by 6 per cent, while vegetable imports into the US market remained stable compared with the January to August period of 2011, USDA said.
Total US fresh fruit exports reached US$2.77bn in value in the first half of the year, with apple sales totalling US$535m, marking an increase of 5 per cent on 2011.
Organic apple exports also registered a strong performance, with sales up 147 per cent to US$54.7m against the year-earlier period.
In the import trade, fresh fruit imports into the US market, excluding bananas and plantains, amounted to some US$3.8bn between January and August, a growth of 8 per cent on last year.
Table grapes accounted for a large share of the import trade, USDA said, representing US$722m, which marked an 8 per cent hike on the same period in 2011.
Avocado imports, meanwhile, totalled US$493m, down 3 per cent on 2011, while pineapple imports rose by 9 per cent to US$298m and blueberry imports grew 9 per cent to US$197m.
Separately, banana and plantain imports rose 5 per cent to some US$1.2bn, according to the report.
In the vegetable category, US fresh exports contracted by 6 per cent to US$1.3 between January to August.
Lettuce sendings were down by 4 per cent to US$159m, while fresh potato sendings declined 7 per cent and onions fell by 11 per cent.
Conversely, USDA said fresh vegetable imports into the US market remained virtually stable at US$3.78bn in value.
Imports of field-grown bell peppers almost doubled, rising 43 per cent to US$157m in value terms, while greenhouse tomato imports slipped 2 per cent to US$790m.
