The Produce Marketing Association (PMA) has been monitoring fresh fruit markets globally with special attention during the Covid-19 pandemic. For Chilean fruit, the PMA has noted critical patterns in key destination markets like the U.S., Brazil, the UK and China.

In the PMA's most recent market report "Consumer Sentiment", it found that fresh produce consumption has jumped in each of these markets. Relative to consumer behavior at the beginning of the health crisis, figures are even higher.

Of special interest in the Association's newest release is the uptick in consumption in the U.S.. Around half of the consumers in the poll indicated that they are buying more fruit and vegetables in the pandemic - a trend that has been going up since June.

"This shows us that for the U.S. consumer, buying fresh produce is more than just mixing up the variety of things that they have available to them, but also that they are incorporating those things long-term into their diets," detailed Lauren M. Scott, CEO of PMA.

Shoppers are also more concerned with the quality of fresh produce, the packaging and expiration dates in a way that perhaps the common consumer was not as attuned to before the pandemic.

In the case of Brazil, patterns in fresh fruit consumption have proven similar since the around the middle of April. The percentage of Brazilian consumers that indicated that they are more likely to buy fresh produce since the Covid-19 outbreak was between 49% and 63%.

This Latin American market's shift in the consumption of produce is the most dramatic change, according to the report.

For the U.K. consumer, fresh fruit sales have also risen significantly. Currently, according to responses by consumers, it is a lot easier to find fresh produce in supermarkets than before.

Alongside greater accessibility in the country, respondents also voiced concern about the quality of fresh produce sold on online platforms and delivery services - something relatively new resulting from the pandemic.

Attitudes about fresh produce in the Chinese market have not changed as dramatically as in other countries. It is important to note that the PMA's study began in March 2020, potentially impacting the responses of Chinese consumers as fresh fruit consumption patterns may have been impacted earlier than March.

China is seeing more stable responses when it comes to consumption patterns.

"These responses confirm that producers and exporters should continue their efforts to inform consumers about the sanitary conditions under which fresh produce are handled, to ease some of the concerns that consumers may have during the pandemic," added Andrés Armstrong, representative of the PMA in Chile.

To find more details about the study, click here.