The kiwifruit in Chile and in the world

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the KIWIFruIt In chIle and In the World

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caRloS cRUzaT2

aBstract - The kiwi is a fruit that, has only been in Europe for about 60 years, which signifies a great

potential for the development of its consumption and great difficulty in the educational process of the product. currently there is a growing increase in world production, which to date is above the growth in demand. This means that the kiwi categories are not growing significantly and, on the contrary, the kiwi is at a crossroad that will be resolved in the coming years. The changing global economic scenario affects high-value products such as kiwis, making it hard to predict their commercial results. The worldwide market has clearly indicated through the demand and the prices that it is interested in the sweeter yellow varieties. asian markets have been and are expected to continue to grow. The increase in world production has also generated overlap in stocks between the hemispheres, which makes it necessary to closely monitor commercial strategies regarding the start and end of the season. in this way, the market entry of the southern hemisphere kiwifruit is conditioned according to the presence of fruit from the northern hemisphere. The unique features and uses of the kiwi make it one of the most interesting fruits present in the world. For this reason it is also a fruit with high purchase value. in spite of the described variables and market trends, there is a growing demand for consuming better quality kiwis and willingness to pay a higher price.

Index terms: production, actinidia deliciosa, producers.

o KIWI no chIle e no mundo

resumo- como fruta, o kiwi apareceu na europa, há apenas 60 anos, tendo potencial de crescimento.

atualmente há um crescimento na produção mundial, acima do crescimento da demanda. há um efeito também da economia neste cenário, sendo difícil prever o que vai acontecer. o tipo de kiwi mais doce tem maior demanda. o mercado asiático tem crescido e espera-se que continue a crescer .o crescimento da produção tem causado uma superposição dos estoques de diferentes países produtores, o que condiciona as exportações. as características únicas do kiwi e seu uso tem feito dele um fruto impar no mundo, com alto valor de mercado. apesar das variáveis comentadas, há um demanda crescente para o consumo do kiwi de alta qualidade e por preço elevado.

termos para indexação: produção, actinidia deliciosa, produtores.

1_{(Trabalho 451-13). Recebido em: 20-09-2013. aceito para publicação em: 15-12-2013. Palestra ii Simpósio internacional de}

Fruticultura- Frutas exóticas, 21 a 25 de outubro de 2013. Jaboticabal-SP.

2_{agricultural engineer ,Masters in Business administration,President of the chilean Kiwi committee}

IntroductIon

The kiwi is a vine that grows in the forests of china with a cold subtropical climate, once known as the chinese gooseberry. it was in the early 1900s, when a group of missionaries took the kiwi from china to new zealand.

in the 1930s the hayward variety was selected which became popular through the domestication of the plant and its guidance on a Spanish trellis.

during the ‘60s the marketing of Kiwis from new zealand began to grow and they acquired the name “Kiwifruit”, referring to the origin of exports from new zealand.

Thereafter the fruit became popular due to its health attributes. The kiwi has the Vitamin c of

two oranges, the potassium of a banana, the fiber of a bowl of cereal, and is low in calories, along with a very attractive green color and a great flavor.

its marketing has been hindered by the lack of knowledge on how to consume this fruit. To date there are no “family or grandmother’s recipes” about the use of kiwi in cooking. For this reason, the introduction of a new product generates a tremendous educational challenge in markets for the supply chains and consumers.

Considering the above, the kiwi was definitely one of the twentieth century’s worldwide novelties in fruit, and its commercial cultivation spread from new zealand to northern hemisphere countries such as italy, France, USa, Japan, and others.

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Rev. Bras. Frutic., Jaboticabal - SP, v. 36, n. 1, p. 112-123, Março 2014

and the first plantations were created in 1978. In these three decades, kiwi growing has undergone progressive changes, one of the most important being its relocation to areas consistent with its soil and climate requirements.

in italy (the country with the world’s largest surface area under cultivation) has also experienced crop relocation, currently concentrated in the lazio Region (latina Province).

its introduction into new zealand was in the early twentieth century, and, since the beginning of its cultivation, the Bay of Plenty has concentrated the largest plantations and today it is recognized as the ideal zone for the kiwi.

Principal Worldwide Growers

The principal worldwide growers for export have been historically: italy, new zealand, and chile. italy has been by far the largest grower and its exports have grown in europe. in recent years, however, it has begun exporting outside of the european continent.

it is important to consider china as a grower of local varieties, which, until now, has not participated in world exports. however, in the last decade the kiwi plantations have grown remarkably and they are now producing more than in italy. This makes us think about the huge market which china represents and, as always, its ability to flood markets concerns us if its starts to export.

The concentration of global producers is high. The leading growers are china, italy, new zealand, chile, and somewhat less in Greece and they concentrate over 85% of worldwide kiwi production.

The main importers are the european countries totaling almost 70% of total exports, followed by north america.

in the last decade the distribution of fruit in

Europe has become more efficient so that imports from the Southern hemisphere (from both chile and new zealand) have been distributed, obtaining better coverage of markets. changes in the world economy have been clearly displayed in the destination of imports, and as a result significant growth has been seen in asia, where Japan, Korea, and china have grown exponentially and probably will continue to do.

Markets in the Middle east have concentrated in some countries with emerging economies.

in europe, Spain has been a high growth market that has added the kiwi to its food basket as well as the Russian market which has surprised us with its ongoing product demands.

United States has remained stable, with no significant growth.

latin america has behaved like its economy, highly localized depending on the situation of each country.

chile

chile is the third largest exporter of kiwifruit in the world, characterized by being grown in a large 500-kilometer long geographical area from north to south, which provides broad agro-climatic diversity.

chile has more than 11,000 hectares planted with kiwi, out of which 35% are young plantations and where 5% of the total amount planted correspond to new yellow and green varieties.

chile’s main market in 2012 was europe, which represents 50% of shipments, followed by north america representing 16%, latin america 20%, the Middle east 4%, and the Far east 10%.

The trend of chilean exports is to extend the commercialization window so as to cover the months of March to october, leaving a few months at the end of the year for nearby latin american markets.

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in recent years there has been increased investment in fruit storage infrastructure, which is reflected in an annual sales strategy, turning away from the traditional system of harvest and shipping.

The chilean industry was organized through the chilean Kiwifruit committee to reorient its arrival to the markets, where the strategy has been based on improving the quality and positioning of chilean origin kiwi. Representing 80% of the industry, this organization (www.comitedelkiwi.cl) has generated harvesting standards, has transferred technology to growers and exporters, has legally defended its markets, has positioned the chilean kiwi in the world and, above all, has made the first steps towards a change in the quality of the fruit, which has already been recognized in the world market. The example of voluntary organization with very specific goals and has been well accepted and in some cases used as a model.

the Brazilian market

Brazil is the principal latin american market to date and is larger than the entire Middle eastern market, larger than any of the individual countries in the Far east, and is as important as Russia and Spain in the european market.

however, for Brazil it is a new fruit that only complements other fruits at certain times of the year, because, domestically, it has a huge amount of locally produced fruits available at very low prices and the kiwi is inserted as an exotic, elegant, and high price fruit.

The differences in consumption in Brazil depend on knowledge of the kiwi in each state, and also the logistical facility of access where the southern states are easily accessible for chile, while northeastern states have a very high freight cost, making shipping volumes lower due to transit times and high costs of domestic freight.

Markets such as Recife, register 200 grams of kiwi per capita per year, Sao Paulo 710 grams, and Porto alegre 580 grams. however, when reviewing the consumption of fruit in each of these states, the differences in local consumption are not as large as those given by the kiwi, which is explained by reasons such as knowledge of the kiwi, access to fruit, and the purchasing power of each market according to its gross domestic product.

Supply in Brazil

The demand is mainly fulfilled with chilean fruit, which accounts for over 50% of kiwi consumed. it is also complemented with the northern hemisphere, with 47% of fruit from italy. Volumes have recently been added from new zealand and local productions of Brazil have been professionally marketed.

Brazilian imports

The imports of kiwi in Brazil have grown significantly in the past three years, seeking a greater supply of kiwi during the entire year.

Brazilian commercialization

commercialization of the kiwi is very different if it is done through wholesale markets, which seek low prices, or is sold directly through supermarkets, which seek products with high turnover and profit margin and with a high sugar content, because the Brazilian consumer enjoys and prefers sweet products.

Psa, bacterial canker of the Kiwifruit

The Pseudomona syringae pathovar actinidiae, a highly virulent bacterium called Psa-V is capable of causing sudden death in yellow kiwis and cause severe damage to green kiwifruit.

This bacterium is characterized by generating vascular damage obstructing the movement of nutrients and causing the death of branches that are no longer supplied with the latter.

The plant’s defense actions manifest in the foliage with rings spots, where the plant isolates the presence of the bacteria. The presence of the bacterial canker generates vascular obstruction where plant defenses seek to exude it, displayed as red-colored exudates in the case of chile. The Psa is propagated by uncontrolled human actions, such as contaminated tissue, plant debris containing the bacteria that are carried to growing areas, contaminated tools that come into contact with healthy plants.

environmental agents favor the spread of this disease, which is capable of moving up to 100 kilometers in storm conditions.

The importance of having a proper sanitary management plan lies in reducing the presence of Bacteriosis in kiwifruit orchards. This is complemented by a healthy plantation, balanced with management aimed at attacking the Psa, which to date has shown effective control.

The copper-based sanitary programs, elicitors, natural bactericides, are the tools available to date.

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play a mitigating effect. however, they are unable to cure the disease and eliminate it.

The yellow varieties are more susceptible than the green ones, which has resulted in the loss of more than 90% of the plantations of yellow kiwis where Psa is present in italy and new zealand.

increased susceptibility to Psa is given by: the susceptibility of the variety, young plantations of 1-6 years in age, plantations in humid climatic areas and/or cold zones with frosts, or being located near a Psa positive orchard or regulated area.

Commercialization at a worldwide level

The kiwi is a fruit that requires an external supply of ethylene to properly initiate ripening.

external contamination from other fruits or logistical processes may expose the kiwi to the presence of ethylene, initiating its ripening and thereby producing the undesired loss of pressure in the fruit.

Packaging formats respond to the business strategy employed. To commercialize or store fruit with high pressures, most types of packaging can be used without problems. Bulk packaging or packing in trays of 3.2 kilos are common used.

The fruit almost ready for consumption requires packaging that will not expose the fruit to handling by the consumer, who in seeking the proper ripeness, usually damages the fruit on the shelf.

For fruit that will soon be sold, with pressures close to consumption levels, we recommend packaging in clamshells, punets, or trays with two to four kiwis.

it is important to incorporate instructions on the packaging in order to educate consumers as to the consumption of kiwi.

Kiwi commercialization requires a process similar to that of bananas and mangoes, since, as in these fruits, the correct ripening of the kiwi is obtained by undergoing ripening protocols in specially designed chambers.

Bananas display ripeness through the change in fruit color, from green to yellow. in the case of kiwifruit, there are no external changes during the ripening process, so it is very difficult to visually recognize the condition of the fruit. The appropriate indicator is the pressure of the fruit, where fruits that have been ripened frequently have degraded starches converted into palatable sugar, while the cell walls of the fruit degrade thereby losing pressure. For its control, the use of pressure-measuring equipment, such as Pressure Meters, is indispensable.

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reFerÊncIas

BelRoSe. World Kiwifruit Review. creston lane, 2013.

coMiTe del KiWi. Resumen temporada 2012

del Kiwi Chileno. Santiago, 2012.

coMiTe del KiWi. Manual de Producción del

Kiwi Chileno. Santiago, 2012.

FRShFRUiTPoRTal.The Kiwifruit Scoop. San-tiago: international Special edition, 2013.