Freeze reduces Argentina's blueberry crop

The Sept. 5-6 freeze actually may have affected up to 80% of the blueberry crop in that area.“In Tucuman, 50% to 60% of the crop has been lost (from early estimates). Tucumán has about 5 million pounds or about 25% of the market,” said Keith Mixon, president of Sunnyridge Farm Inc., Winter Haven, Fla. “So, in the end, there will still be significant increases in blueberries from Argentina.” But Dave Bowe, owner of Dave’s Specialty Imports Inc., Coral Springs, Fla., said, from initial reports he received, the situation could be even more serious. “My guess is the production is no more. They’re done for this year. This is a guess, but from my point of view, they’re going to lose 80% of their production,” Bowe said. Still, fresh produce industry experts are optimistic about this year’s deal, overall. “In the Concordia area, they had a lot of weather with hail, high winds and heat that impacted the quality,” said Mark Girardin, president of North Bay Produce Inc., Traverse City, Mich., of the 2007 Argentine deal out of the most important growing region. “As far as this year, it’s a much better deal with clean fruit. Size is good, and volume is up over last year significantly.” Girardin and other importers said they expect the crop to be 50% to 70% larger this year as berry bushes reach maturity. U.S. arrivals are expected to begin as early as mid-September so as not to coincide with the end of the British Columbia deal. Berries picked in late August and early September have been loaded on ocean vessels bound for the United Kingdom and Europe, where phytosanitary restrictions do not require fumigation or 30-day cold treatment. Marcelo Estrada, general manager of United Farms LLC, Hallandale Beach, Fla., echoed the optimism voiced by many importers about this year’s season.
“It seems that we have a good season coming in,” Estrada said.