Produce Trends
T he United States is one of the major importers of table grapes in the world, second only to Europe. Over the past 10 years, from the 2012- 13 to the 2021-22 season, U.S. table grape volumes increased by 25.8%, with imports from Peru growing sevenfold, USDA data shows. Peru usually dominates exports to the U.S. during December and January due to seasonally higher prices. The U.S. and Chilean shipping seasons overlap only in December. As Peru’s season subsides, the Chilean season commences. Although Chile is one of the lead- ing global producers, imports to the U.S. from the country have decreased significantly during the past five years. Influence among suppliers in the southern hemisphere has substantially changed as a result of Peru’s emergence as a major supplier. Particularly, Peru has taken a sizable chunk of Chile’s former share in the U.S. import market. Looking at the first two charts on the next page, the dramatic shift in market dynamics over the last five years is striking. Being further north in the country, the table grape harvests in the Atacama and Coqui- mbo regions of Chile are early in the season, generally in December and February. These grapes have been the most affected by the growing volumes arriving from Peru. At the same time as there is in- creased pressure from volumes, the average spot market prices of table grapes in the United States have not increased substantially over the pre- vious ten seasons. This means that
At the same time as there is increased pressure from volumes, the average prices of table grapes in the United States have not increased
substantially over the previous ten seasons.
the increases in input and transpor- tation costs have been borne by the supply chain, squeezing margins and increasing pressure on producers.
maturation in the country is expedit- ed by ideal growing conditions and a daily average of 12 hours of sunshine. According to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, these con- ditions, combined with precision irrigation, enable Peru to mature vines 55% faster than in neighbor- ing countries, thus facilitating the country to adapt swiftly to market
Outlook for Peru Table grape production in Peru
occurs predominantly in two areas along the coast: Ica in the south (41%) and Piura in the north (22%). Vine
Table grape volumes by origin in the U.S. market
2B
1B
0
Years
Sum
Argentina
Brazil
California-Central
California-South
Canada
Chile
Egypt
Italy Peru Spain
Mexico
Morocco
South Africa
South Korea
Source: USDA / Agronometrics
Vision Magazine 23
December 2022
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