Mexico: Blueberry exports succeed

The blueberry grown in Mexico gains ground and is being sold like hotcakes in the export markets. A…

The blueberry grown in Mexico gains ground and is being sold like hotcakes in the export markets.

According to data from the Tariff Information System via Internet (SIAVI), foreign sales increased by 98 percent from 2013 to 2014.

In 2013, the country exported blueberries for $41.95 million dollars, but in 2014 the value increased to $83,203,000 dollars.

The high rates are due to the 40% increase in acreage permitted by the country's climatic conditions between 2013 and 2014, said Mario Andrade, president of the board of the National Association of Exporters of Berries (Aneberries).

He said that, so far in 2015, blueberry cultivation has had a growth rate of between 20 and 25 percent.

Currently there are about 3,000 hectares devoted to fruit, compared to the initial 500 hectares that the country had in 2010.

Mexico has become a competitor to supply the demand from the United States, previously supplied by its own production and imports from Canada. Mexico exports about 90 percent of its production to the neighboring country.

To begin production in Mexico, producers adapted the techniques used in blueberry production in Chile and the United States.

Blueberry production has considerable returns as they can be up to 50 percent of the investment, he said.

The states that currently produce blueberry, and that have been spearheading the development of this crop in the country, are Jalisco, Michoacan, the State of Mexico, Puebla, Baja California and Colima.