The Chilean table grape industry exported 64 million boxes, equivalent to 528,795 tons during the 2023-24 fiscal year.
The protocol is still awaiting its official publication by the U.S. Federal Registrar and approval in the Chilean National Congress.
The Global Grape Convention will be held Thursday, August 8 at the Casino Monticello Events Center in Chile and is organized by Yentzen Group.
The sector is looking at a total production of 62,5 million boxes, according to Frutas de Chile’s last industry survey. If realized, this would mean a 4% increase over earlier projections, which put production at 60 million boxes.
“I know this issue is a high priority for producers here in Chile, as it is for us in the United States. We are working hard with La Moneda,” Ambassador Meehan said.
The East Coast will receive approximately 15 million of those boxes, and the West Coast 5 million.
High winter temperatures caused poor sprouting, which implies more work in greening, thinning, and harvesting, lower efficiency in all work, and generally lower yields.
Supply issues began in August when Hurricane Hilary struck California. From there, the industry witnessed a domino effect of adverse conditions.
Newer varieties such as Prime, Sweet Celebration and Midnight Beauty are gaining traction, collectively expected to represent 63% of Chile's total fresh grape exports, nearing 40 million boxes.
Members of the industry and exporters see this as a great opportunity to test out the system and see how it could be implemented in other regions of the country, as well as other export markets like the U.S.
