B
razilian fruit farming operations
have managed to keep supply
stable over the past years. The
production is estimated at 43.8
million tons for 2016, down 1%
from the 44.3 million tons harvested in the
previous year. This result was released by
the Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture
and Livestock (CNA), in their balance pub-
lished inearlyDecember 2016. Theentity re-
lied on the numbers furnished by the Bra-
zilian Institute of Geography and Statistics
(IBGE) and by fruit exporters. Brazil ranks as
third biggest global fruit producer, coming
only after China and India.
CNA officials have it that the perfor-
mance anticipated for 2016 is good. They
also explain that the reduction in the to-
tal volume is a reflection of the small-
er crops caused by climate problems in
several fruit growing regions. However,
with the return of the good rains, most
fruit trees are believed to recover their
lost production, over the last months in
2016. They cite, for example, that the ap-
ple crop dropped by 40% in Santa Catari-
na. Two weak winters, in 2015 and 2016,
adversely affected apple tree dormancy.
Furthermore, late frost conditions killed
the flowers of the trees. In Espírito San-
to, the drought caused losses of up to 70%
to the production of papaya, say sources
from the Brazilian Association of Papaya
Producers and Exporters (Brapex).
In spite of the adverse weather condi-
tions that jeopardized the performance in
important production hubs in 2016, CNA
officials anticipate that fruit farming will
continue as one of the most important
sectors of Brazilian agribusiness in 2017.
Judging from the calculations released
by the confederation, production could
reach a total of 44 million tons. Banana
and papaya supplies should soar 10%
up until 2025, from data published by the
Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food
Supply (Mapa). According to CNA sources,
the introduction of new production and
post-harvest procedures should boost the
efficiency of the fruit producing systems
throughout the Country, thus contributing
towards smaller production costs.
Fruit consumption is equally supposed
to continue on the rise in 2017. It has been
observed that Brazilian consumers are get-
ting increasingly concerned about healthy
food. Furthermore, they are greatly aware
of the fact that fruit consumption is a pow-
erful weapon against obesity. If the eco-
nomic scenario in Brazil and the purchas-
ingpower of thepeoplehappen to improve
in 2017, domestic consumption will heat
up over the year, say entity officials. CNA
sources have it that Brazilian fruit farmers,
in order to meet this new market reality,
should give priority to quality, seeking to
invest in best agricultural practices, better
post-harvest procedures, cool warehouses
andmodern transportation and logistics.
Brazilianfruitproductionisestimatedat43.8milliontons,
down1%,asaresultofbadweatherproblems
Forall
tastes
FRUIT
Sílvio Ávila
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