Chilean Grape Guide

Published 2021년 8월 30일

Trade Overview

Which Countries Are the Main Importers of Chilean Grapes?

Import Value of top 5 importing Countries

Who are main importing companies in the UK?

Seasonality of Main Producing Regions

What Are the Most Common Varieties of Chilean Grapes?

Flame

Cherry red color, seedless, sweet-tart, and crunchy. Medium-large grapes. Time to ripens/harvest around late May with a pH around 5.5 - 6.5 and years to bear along 2-4 years.

Thompson

Light green seedless, firm, round berries, sweet, juicy with very tender skin. One of the most popular table grapes. It is also the grape most used for raisins. The color of the grapes is yellow-green. Medium-large grapes. Time to ripens/harvest around August with a pH around 5.5 - 6.5 and years to bear along 2-4 years.

Crimson Seedless

The color of grapes is light red, very distinctive, sweet, juicy flavor, and elongated, pale pink berries. They have a crisp, firm skin with juicy pulp. The flesh is greenish-white and has a medium level of crispness. Time to ripens/harvest around July with a pH around 5.5 - 6.5 and years to bear along 2-4 years.

Red Globe

Red Globe is a variety of very large spherical, seeded crunchy, and juicy red grapes with firm flesh used mainly as a table grape. With an average bunch weight of approximately around 1000 G. The color of the grapes is red. Time to ripens/harvest around July with a pH around 6 - 6.5. Very good suitability for cold storage.

Superior

Frosty Green seedless, white round berries. Fairly small to medium long, compact, tapered bunches, and Tart-sweet flavor. Firm flesh and tender skin. With an average bunch weight of approximately around 250 to 500 G. Time to ripens/harvest around May with a pH around 5.5 - 6.

What is the Seasonality for Chilean Grapes?

Timeline:

October: Buyers will start reaching out to suppliers to secure programs, US buyers will start negotiation processes during their Fruit Trade Shows

End of November: Harvest Starts in North Chile

End Nov/Early Dec: Exports Start

Chile currently dominates the market from about mid-Feb to the end of April but this window is getting smaller due to increased competition.

Export Season: November – May

-Export starts in November, peaks in February and March, and closes in May

Quality Control/Certification

What is the best climate and soil to grow grapes?

Temperature

Table grapes typically require a hot and dry climate, i.e. warm days, cool nights, and low humidity. These generally produce higher-quality grapes. The season at a particular site must be long enough to allow both the fruit and the vegetative parts of the vine to mature. It must provide enough heat energy to ripen the fruit and vegetation. There must be adequate sunlight hours to ensure that a sufficient supply of carbohydrates is produced by photosynthesis to mature the fruit and vine and to maintain the future productive potential for healthier vines and sweetness of the fruit. There must be very little rain during the ripening period—this will prevent various grape diseases. Winter must be long enough to ensure a period of dormancy for the vines, and there should be no late frost because it will be a threat to the young buds. They are sensitive to freezing temperatures, which normally occur in winter and can damage and destroy flower clusters.

Soil requirements

Table grapevines must be vigorous to ensure high yields and quality; the better the soil, the healthier the vines, and the greater the chance for high tonnage and quality. Table grapes can be grown in a wide variety of soil types. The most important characteristics are good internal drainage and adequate depth. Waterlogged soils will lead to a reduction in vine health and added difficulties in vineyard management. Grapevines require deep, well-drained soil with a minimum of 75 CM to 1 M of permeable soil with no impeding layers (shallow bedrock, chemical, or physical hardpans) for optimum vine growth. Although grapevines can be grown in different soil types, they grow well in sandy loam soil with average fertility. Regardless of soil type, the drainage must be good because this will help the roots to spread and grow well. Avoid growing grapes in soils that contain clay because it may cause poor drainage and salt accumulation. Grapes are fairly tolerant to a wide range of soils and pH but do well in a pH of 5,5 to 6,0.

Source:

Grapes Production Guideline

What Is the Quality Check Process for Chilean Grapes?

Harvesting, sorting, and grading.

Transportation & cool chain, to maintain the optimum condition to deliver high-quality products.

Pesticide traces, the whole plantation, and the production cycle have to be controlled to make sure that the final product is safe.

Brix & acidity level.

Berry appearance.

Berry color.

Bunch shape.

Berry flavor and texture: crisp, sweet pulp with a delicate.

Fruits maturity.

Insects and disease damage.

Physical damage.

What Are Some Relevant Certifications for Chilean Grapes?

Common certificates for fresh grapes include Global GAP, IFS, or GFSI-recognized food safety management certification schemes. European retailers can also ask for BRC and more upcoming certificates are Organic, SMETA, and Fairtrade. In the near future, more sustainability certificates on the environmental footprint in terms of water use of carbon credits can be expected, examples are in https://www.idhsustainabletrade.com/initiative/sifav/.

Some of the important certifications for grapes include Global GAP, IFS, or GFSI-recognized food safety management certification schemes. European retails can also ask for BRC and more upcoming certificates are Organic, SMETA, and Fairtrade.

General Product Introduction

How is the general landscape of the Chilean fresh grape market?

Global Market

Global Market Size: USD 10.30 B (2020)

41% Increase (Over the last 10 years, 2012 vs 2020)

29% increase (Over the last 5 years, 2016 vs 2020)

Chile Global Export Value: 1.54B USD- Holds 14.95% of the Global Export Market

Export period: November/December – May/June
Peak Season Chile dominates the export market from Mid-Feb to end of April

Despite lower production volumes, Chile continues to be the biggest exporter of table grapes but is being closely followed by Peru. India and China have been presented an opportunity to capture the Asian and European markets, and may slowly displace existing exporters like Chile.

What Are the Export Trends for Chilean Grapes?

Most of its productions head to North America (48.3%) and the rest heads largely to Asia (26.9%) and Europe (16%)

Chile often also prioritizes the United States and Chinese markets, which have been their 2 biggest export markets

Most of Chile’s table grapes are shipped to Europe at the end of the Chilean season because there are still large overlapping supplies available from Peru and South Africa in the first months of the year
Production volumes have been declining because of varietal transitions but also due to water and labor shortages

All Traditional varieties (Red Globe, Crimson, Thompson, and Flame) exports declined while all Protected varieties (Red, White, Black Seedless, Timco, Sweet Celebration, Allison, Ralli S, and Krispy)
Total export volume is still higher for traditional varieties though