Blueberry demand still remains low in Indonesia

Importers reported that though blueberries are not as expensive as cherry and strawberry, the main reason for the reluctance to buy blueberries is due to unwillingness to pay a premium for small-sized bush fruits and misperception of fresh blueberry taste profile compared to what consumers enjoy in more ready-to-consume drinks, ice creams, candies, and fillings/jams. The hard fact is that it's much cheaper to enjoy the blueberry taste in ready-to-consume applications than purchasing fresh confined to shelves at premium supermarkets, which also slows the popularity.

The limitation also comes from blueberry harvest season and mandatory air transport, which creates the unbalanced value of money perception in the top mind of consumers. Meanwhile, most blueberries in the Indonesian market come from USA and Australia. As of March 2022, some importers are reconsidering alternative origins from the EU, Chile, South Africa but with a very strict price target, USD 20-21 per box CIP JKT.