SURVEY OF THE CHILEAN SWEET CHERRY INDUSTRY

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) production in Chile totals 5,513 ha (1999) and ~30,000 mt, mainly for fresh market production, 80% of which is exported. The traditional area of cherry production ranges from Curicó to Santiago (150 km). A new area is beginning to be developed 1,300 km south of Santiago. The traditional area, in general, presents some advantages for cherry production: sufficient winter chilling, low incidence of spring frosts and winds. Climatic conditions are dry during the growing season. However, disease problems like Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae and viruses affect cherry production. The main commercial varieties are ‘Bing’, ‘Van’, ‘Early Burlat’ and ‘Lambert’. Interest in new varieties has strong in recent years. Orchards are irrigated mainly by furrow, but drip irrigation is increasing. Orchard density is increasing in new plantations, and tree size is decreasing to promote earlier harvests. Postharvest management utilizes refrigerated transport and storage, which has been a big challenge for the Chilean industry. International prices are attractive to Chilean growers since production provides fresh fruit to the Northern Hemisphere during the “counter” seasons of November and December. We are conducting studies to grow cherries in non-traditional areas to extend the harvest from October to February.