São Paulo – Brazilian apple producers hope for reduction in fruit exports this year. In 2011, the sector had US$ 36 million in revenues with sales on the international market, but in 2012 the Brazilian Association of Apple Producers (ABPM) forecasts exports of just US$ 35 million, a reduction of 3%. There was 35% reduction in foreign sales last year as against 2010, when shipments abroad generated US$ 55.3 million. In volume, shipments abroad totalled 48,000 tonnes, against 90,800 tonnes in the previous year.
According to the president at ABPM, Pierre Nicolas Pérès, the main reason for the reduction in Brazilian apple exports is the sector difficulty to compete abroad due to current exchange rates, as well as the fact that the domestic market is buying much. Abroad, Brazil faces competition with apples from countries like Chile, Argentina, South Africa and New Zealand, which are among the world’s main producers of the fruit.
The region that imports most apples from Brazil is Europe. But the Arab countries are also included in the list of importers. “The Arab market has great potential, is a great buyer of fruit and fruit juice. The Arabs buy from the United State and Chile, but we can compete as we have sweeter apples than they have,” said Pérès. According to him, the climate in Brazil is favourable to fruit sweetness, and the Arabs like sweet fruit.
Last year, Brazil exported US$ 1.1 million, or 1,500 tonnes of apples to the countries of the Arab League. In 2010, sales revenues totalled US$ 3.5 million and the volume shipped was 5,900 tonnes, according to figures disclosed by the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade. The main importers of Brazilian apples in the region were the Emirates, with US$ 366,000, Libya, with US$ 289,000, and Tunisia, with US$ 246,900.
Production
Brazil is currently harvesting Gala apples, with 65% of the crop already produced. The harvesting of this kind of apple is from January to March. Fuji apples have their crop between April and May. According to Pérès, this year, 1.15 million tonnes of fruit should be picked in the country. There should be reduction in production, as in 2010 it reached 1.278 million tonnes.
The president at ABPM says that there has been reduction in the area cultivated due to the sector’s low profitability. Climate problems, like an excessively cold spring, also affected the crop. Brazilian apple production is concentrated in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and Paraná. Santa Catarina is the main producer.
*Translated by Mark Ament
