Overview Chilean Grape Market 2020/21

Published 2021년 3월 31일

The largest grape exporting country in the world, Chile is currently facing a constraint in the supply of grapes. The grape production regions witnessed heavy downpour due to which it is expected that 40% of total grape production in Chile will be unusable due to mold damage. The U.S, the largest importer of Chilean grapes is likely to face a shortage in the coming months putting upward pressure on the prices.

Chile is the world’s largest exporter of grapes, with more than 17.8% share in the global exports. Despite the COVID-19 and logistic constraints during 2020, Chile exported 745K MT grapes worth approximately USD 1M which is only 7% and 5% less than the quantity and value exported in 2019 respectively. The main export destinations for Chile’s grape exports in 2020 was the United States of America, with a share of 65.7% in the export value, followed by Hongkong and the United Kingdom with 19.35% and 5.84% share, respectively. Chile also exported a small percentage of its grapes to Japan, Germany, and Portugal in 2020 but most grapes reach the American markets.

Chilean grape exports are projected to fall by 12% in the upcoming season, due to heavy rains in the main producing regions. Bloomberg reported that 40% of total grape production in Chile will be unusable due to mold damage. The grapes that have managed to get harvested post rains cannot withstand long transfer and long warehousing time. Therefore, it is crucial to distribute the grapes quickly across different channels to be consumed by the final buyer.

Amidst the chaos, grape lovers in Northern America fear that they might have to face a shortage of grapes in the upcoming months. The U.S. imported 679K MT of grapes in 2020 out of which 276K were sourced from the U.S making it the largest importer of Chilean grapes. The ongoing supply shock in Chile is most likely to impact the prices in domestic markets of the U.S.

According to Bloomberg, it is still too early to see a significant impact on retail prices; however, some varieties in the U.S. are currently 5% above in comparison to the previous year. The shortage is expected to hit the American markets during the end of March and last up till May for green grapes which are less resistant to heavy rains in comparison to the red variety of grapes.