Exports of dried and processed fruit increased 14.4% in the first two months of the year compared with the same period of 2017, according
to numbers released by the Brazilian Association of Producers and Exporters of Fruit and Fruit Products (Abrafrutas). Revenue totalled US$ 98.1 million in the period, up 18.3% since last year.
The main highlights in exported volume were orange, strawberries, bananas, apples and preserved fruit. In total, Brazil exported 124.3 thousand tons of fruit in the first two months of the year.
Producing states
Brazil’s top exporter states in the period were Rio Grande do Norte and Ceará, with with sales of 33.8 and 25.1 million tons of melon, respectively. São Paulo came in third with 18.3 million tons of lemon, followed by Rio Grande do Sul (14.5 million tons of apple) and Pernambuco (8.9 million tons of mango).
Export boost
Although Brazil ranks as the third largest fruit producer in the world, it is only the 23rd in terms of volume exported. Aiming to improve the country’s international presence in this market, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA) has set as a policy goal to increase fruit exports by 50% in the next two years.
MAPA also launched the National Plan for the Development of Fruit Crops (PNDF), a partnership with the private sector aiming to strengthen entities of the fruit growing sector, promote stronger development of cooperatives and create a sector-specific fund with public and private resources to help develop the fruit growing productive chain.
Source: www.brazilgovnews.gov.br