As of the first quarter of 2022, Mexico and Brazil are also seen as relevant, while a strong drop in Russia is perceived as a result of the war.
In the first quarter of 2022, the United States, Poland and Germany are part of the podium of the main destinations of Chilean prunes abroad, indicates the Office of Agricultural Studies and Policies (Odepa), an agency dependent on the Chilean Ministry of Agriculture.
According to these statistics, the United States, despite its large local production, due to its domestic consumption -associated with young people and wellness trends- has become the main importer with 2,127 metric tons (MT), equivalent to US$ 8 million (FOB), representing 22% of the total amounts received by Chile.
Around 70% of Chilean prunes are sold to the group of the 10 main destinations, which in total reach 70 countries.
The total of Chilean exports in this period has reached US$ 35,373,027, “a significant amount given that prices are on the rise due to a lower international supply that responds to a drop in world stocks,” says Pedro Acuña, director Executive of Chileprunes.
For its part, Poland with 791 MT and US$ 3.2 million has been the second destination of our prunes exports in the period January-April 2022, while Germany with 657 MT and US$ 2.2 million is third. . Further back and within the top ten are Russia, Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Australia, China and the Netherlands.
“The Russian case deserves a special mention,” adds the Chileprunes executive. Historically, Russia has been an important buyer of Chilean prunes, something that was happening until January 2022, when it was in second place in shipments. Then, the invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, and with the war minimal shipments were recorded in March and April.
At the end of the 2021-2022 season, and observing the estimates that were given a couple of months ago in the market, Chile had a total plum production of 90,000 MT, of which, more than 70,000 MT were available for dehydration, and the remaining 19,000 MT were used for fresh fruit.
