A Colombian company is gearing up to export the first ever seedless grapes from the country this season, as production builds up to commercial levels.

Top Fruits, based in the Cauca Valley, already had 25 hectares of Spain-origin varieties under production and last year planted a further 65 of varieties from Peru.

Speaking with www.freshfruitportal.com, company manager Marco Aurelio Cadavid said he was excited about seeing the first production of the four green and red grapes from the new plantings later this year

"We have seen that phenologically, the plants have adapted very well, with very little loss in the vineyard," he said.

"So far we are very happy but the key moment will be in December when the fruit is ready."

Top Fruits will ship 40% of its production this year to export markets, principally the U.S. and Canada. Fruit produced from the original 25 hectares is destined for the domestic market.

"In Colombia, seedless grape varieties are virtually nonexistent, apart from the plants we already had from Spain," he said.

"Peru became a very good opportunity for us to develop seedless varieties since their nurseries are already certified, they have big volumes, and moving plants from there to here is simple as we're much closer."

The representative hopes to boost seedless grape production in the country to generate more business opportunities, both at home and abroad.

While Colombians in general have a strong preference for seeded grapes, the Top Fruits head was hopeful people would learn to love seedless varieties once they had tried them.

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