From Coronda to the world: José Luis Berra, a "fruit grower" at heart and an agronomist by profession, is seeking new varieties of fruit.

José Luis Berra still gets excited when he talks about the upcoming edition of the National Strawberry Festival in Coronda (November 7, 8, and 9). He was born and raised there, in the national capital of that fine fruit that currently floods the greengrocers of the entire country. Grandson and son of "strawberry growers," this agricultural engineer has specialized so much in this crop that he even dreams of breaking down some historical barriers for this activity. From his company Ansur (Ángeles del Sur), he has just sent a first shipment of strawberries to Spain while undertaking a deep varietal review so that this Argentine fruit can start being exported to overseas markets. It is very difficult to think of a smooth export of strawberries today, except to neighboring countries, because the commercial duration of the fruit once it is picked from the plant is very short, barely a week. Then, the strawberries begin to lose that shiny appearance that makes them so coveted in these ...