Between January and September 2023, shipments of Peruvian watermelon They plummeted to 5,310 tons (US$648,000), a decline of -37.2% in volume and -63.6% in value compared to the first nine months of the previous year, according to Fresh Plaza.
According to information collected by the Agraria.pe portal, Chili This year, it became the main buyer of Peruvian watermelon, acquiring 4,567 tons (US$462,000) of the total exported. This represents an increase of 82% in volume and 56% in value, that is, there was a better price this year.
However, the neighboring country of Ecuador It only purchased, until September 2023, about 743 tons (US$186,000), registering a drop of almost -88% in both volume and value of the fruit. This lower demand is what explains the decline in prices.
In Peru, the main production places are located in the regions of Ica (39 Ha.), Moquegua (119.78 Ha) and Tacna (1,120.36 Ha)according to the 2021 campaign.
“The main causes of the drop in watermelon exports would be due to political and logistical complications suffered in the national territory at the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, such as road blockades, strikes, among others,” says Fresh Plaza.
All is not lost: a new market that could open for Peru would be Europe. According to the Ministry of Foreign Trade (SECEX) of that country, the volume of watermelon that has been shipped to the Old Continent has almost tripled in the last decade.
Indeed, the European markets are today the largest consumers of Brazilian watermelon, something that has translated into an increase in income of +19%, reaching US$57 million in 2022.
Source: Larepublica
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