Following the recent rainfall that flooded some of Chile’s main fruit growing regions, the Citrus Committee of the Association of Chilean Fruit Exporters (ASOEX) says that citrus exports will likely remain unaffected.

The group explains that, since citrus growing areas start in the Coquimbo region and go up to the O'Higgins region, located in higher areas protected from frost, volumes will not be impacted. 

They also note that harvests were halted for a few days, during the rains.

Monserrat Valenzuela, manager of the committee, points out that the clementine season has already ended; and that the orange and lemon seasons are “80% done”, with almost all the production harvested. 

Valenzuela tells FreshFruitPortal.com that, although some roads are flooded, once the rain stops they will be accessible again and that no logistics issues are expected.

She also confirmed that projections for the season remain unchanged.

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As for mandarin shipments, which lead Chile’s citrus exports to the U.S., harvesting is 35% advanced. 

The O’Higgins region, one of the most affected by the recent climate conditions, harvests only 15% of total exports, thus overall volumes should remain stable.

As for the fruit industry’s general overview, Ivan Marambio, ASOEX’s president, says that the association is still verifying the extent of the damage.

“The storm that affected us in the last few days left many floods due to water saturation. And, at the same time the overflow of rivers, estuaries and canals could undoubtedly affect some plantations, especially those that are very adjacent to these water sources. However, we are still analyzing, and we do not have estimates of damage yet,” Marambio says.