Ecuador sent the first official shipment of pitahaya to the Chinese market this Monday, April 10th morning. It is about 7,745 kg of fruit from four export companies from Palora, canton of the province of Morona Santiago.

In this way, China joins the 58 countries where Ecuadorian fruit already arrives, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) reported, stating that the fruit was previously inspected by the Agency for Phyto and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control (Agrocalidad).

The first shipment of pitahaya will leave Quito for the Chinese market this Monday, April 10

Fruit left by air from Quito Mariscal Sucre International Airport, after the act attended by state authorities such as the head of MAG, Eduardo Izaguirre; Minister of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries, Julio José Prado; CEO of Agrocalidad, Patricio Almeida.

Izaguirre indicated that the opening of this new market for Ecuadorian pitahaya is a great achievement that will strengthen the association and provide better opportunities for producers.

“Today a new market opens for pitahaya produced in Ecuador. 8 tons of Ecuadorian fruit are already on their way to China. The Asian giant has a market of 400 million potential buyers for the country’s agricultural products,” Izaguirre said.

Almeida, for his part, reminded that the Chinese market is one of the most important for Ecuador. “Our commitment is to continue working for this sector, meeting the requirements and quality standards required by these markets,” said the head of Agrocalidado.

Meanwhile, Prado highlighted the international markets where the exotic fruit is already arriving and the benefits that will be brought by the imminent signing of the trade agreement with the Asian giant.

“There are 58 countries to which we export dragon fruit, including China. We have the largest market in the world for this fruit. That is why it was important to technically close the trade agreement with the Asian giant and sign it as soon as possible,” said the minister.

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Meanwhile, Cheng Feng, Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Ecuador, who was also at the event, highlighted the size of his country’s market of 1.4 billion people, with more than 400 million middle-income consumers. as pointed out by Minister Izaguirre.

“Today, China is already Ecuador’s main non-oil export market, and it is also the most important market in the world,” the Chinese official said.

Pitaya cultivation represents an important foreign exchange income for the Ecuadorian economy. Produced mainly in Morona Santiago, Pichincha, Manabí and Guayas, but also found in Bolívar, Cañaro, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Ríos, Napa, Orellana, Pastaza, Santa Elena, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Sucumbios and Zamora Chinchipe.

Palora is one of the main yellow pitahaya production areas in Ecuador, with plantations covering about 2,400 hectares. In 2022, Ecuador exported more than 23 thousand tons of fruit to different destinations, which represents more than 99 million dollars.

Currently, the United States is the main destination market with 84% of total exports, followed by Canada, Colombia and Singapore.

The Ecuadorian Pitahaya has been seeking entry since 2012

In July 2012, Ecuador requested access to pitahaya from China. This process consisted of eight stages, and the last one was carried out when technicians from that country performed a virtual inspection, in order to confirm the implementation of the provisions of the quarantine protocol for export, MAG reported.

Since April 3 last year, production farms and collection centers that appear on the list of the Chinese customs website have been able to access the market since they have followed the protocols required by the phytosanitary authorities.

Meanwhile, before the departure of the first official shipment of fruit to China, the Embassy of Ecuador in China already announced in a tweet at 06:41 (Ecuadorian time) that the first shipment of pitahaya has arrived in Chinese territory.

The embassy even announced that in the coming days, together with businessmen in Beijing, they will carry out a promotional activity for the launch. However, Agrocalidad stated that the first official shipment of pitahaya was the one that left a few hours later after the official act.