Gabriel Ormeño, president of the blueberry committee of Chilean producers’ federation Fedefruta, has moved to counter recent press reports that the season is suffering severe delays due to heavy rainfall.
He said: “We did have some heavy rains, but they affected only a part of the central area of the country and they fell on a Sunday when growers are not usually harvesting.”
Ormeño, himself a producer from the Chillán area, says the season is only running about five days behind schedule. “We started a little late not because of any rainfall, but rather because of the temperatures in general, which have been unseasonably low,” he said. Morning and afternoon temperatures have fallen to below 10°C across many parts of the country, affecting fruit development in a large number of plantations.
Chile’s central valley produces about half of the country’s blueberry crop across its three provinces and is by far the most important production region for the fruit.
The most northerly areas of the South American country are the first to come on stream and they started their season last month.
The harvest has been working its way southwards since then, but there are also several parts of Chile that have their own microclimate and therefore buck this trend.
Most of the fruit is being exported by airfreight at this stage in the season. Recent press reports have suggested rains could hinder grape and cherry harvesting too.
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