{"id":299984,"date":"2021-10-11T07:00:24","date_gmt":"2021-10-11T10:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/?p=299984"},"modified":"2021-10-13T16:59:43","modified_gmt":"2021-10-13T19:59:43","slug":"domestic-and-imported-strawberries-supply-brazil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/domestic-and-imported-strawberries-supply-brazil\/","title":{"rendered":"Domestic and imported strawberries supply Brazil"},"content":{"rendered":"

S\u00e3o Paulo \u2013 Brazil is a strawberry producer but an importer, too, particularly of frozen strawberries for industrial applications. According to figures from the Ministry of Economy, year to date through August Brazil\u2019s top supplier of frozen strawberries was Egypt, which shipped 1.47 tonnes. From January through August 2020, Brazil purchased 1.03 tonnes from Egypt, up from 288 tonnes a year before. This makes the Arab country Brazil\u2019s top strawberry supplier.\u00a0Pictured above, strawberries sold in the Municipal Market of S\u00e3o Paulo.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Strawberry production in Morocco<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another North African country that supplies frozen strawberries to Brazil is Morocco: 384 tonnes of frozen, cooked or non-cooked strawberries were purchased from January to August 2019, down to 98 tonnes a year later and up to 142 tonnes year to date through August.<\/p>\n

Most of Brazilian strawberry production is devoted to the domestic, raw consumption. As for the manufacturing of other foodstuffs, the suppliers are mainly international. Brazil is also a strawberry exporter. Year to date through August, Brazil\u2019s top buyer was Japan, with imports reaching 8.2 tonnes, followed by Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina.<\/p>\n

Lu\u00eds Eduardo Corr\u00eaa Antunes, a researcher at Brazilian state-run agricultural research agency Embrapa\u2019s Temperate Climate unit in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, says that Brazil has an area of approximately 5,700 hectares of strawberry-producing land. These crops are mostly scattered across the South of Minas Gerais, S\u00e3o Paulo, and Rio Grande do Sul.<\/p>\n

Above ground<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Brazil uses more than one cultivation technique<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Planting is done primarily with one of two techniques: conventional, with the plants in the ground, and above ground, where seedlings are planted over wooden frames with less pesticide use. Antunes explains that for many years, strawberries had been associated with a heavy use of pesticides, thus putting off consumers. But in recent years, technological progress together with public policies and producer certification led to a change in production and consumer perception.<\/p>\n

Other measures taken by companies and government made the production grow in Brazil, but its potential is still underexplored. Measures include seed enhancement, increased cultivated land, and adoption of the above-ground system, which allows to use the same seedling for up to three years, while in traditional production it\u2019s necessary to migrate the plantation every year to prevent the crop from being contaminated by pests. Furthermore, above-ground cultivation has a lower cost but a higher cost-efficiency that compensates the higher investment.<\/p>\n

Importing<\/strong><\/p>\n

The main reasons that make Brazil import the product, Antunes says, are cost and scale. He explains that the strawberries used by the industry to produce toppings, sweets and yogurts, among other purposes, are small fruits as light as 10 grams.<\/p>\n

Here’s more on this:<\/em><\/p>\n