Like every year, the market in Shanghai, China, was filled with excited buyers who witnessed the arrival and opening of the first boxes of cherries of the season from the southern hemisphere.

The fruit was harvested on October 13 in the Tabalí orchard, in the region of Coquimbo, Chile, and was sent to Asia by the exporter Garcés Fruit, to arrive at the markets this Tuesday, after an air trip that departed from Santiago de Chile to Shanghai, with a stopover in New Zealand.

“It was a very special day for us, because we started the season both in Ovalle and nationally very early, week 41, which is a milestone in terms of date, with the first fruit that goes to China, cherry from the Brooks variety; The feeling is that the work we have developed together with the team is paying off, literally, but also with the conditions that we have always sought, which is a fruit that is of good size, that has a good color and that also has the firmness, the crunchiness and sweetness that is so appreciated in Asian markets,” said Jorge Astudillo, Production Manager of Agroindustrial Valle Arriba.

Prices

Despite the earlier arrival of the first cherries of the season to China, compared to last year, the prices of the cherries remained the same as those of the 2022-2023 campaign.

JL ¥1100; JD ¥1200; SJL ¥1300 ;SJD ¥1400 ;PL ¥1500; PD ¥1600

The equivalent in dollars, for 5 kilo boxes of the Brooks variety, fluctuated between US$150 and US$218, prices very similar to those of last season.

Start of the season in the Southern Hemisphere

The harvest of cherries began in Chile 11 days earlier than last year, being the first in the southern hemisphere. On the other hand, Mendoza producers are expected to begin the cherry harvest this week (42), becoming the second country in the Southern Hemisphere to officially start the season for this fruit species.