The International Blueberry Organization (IBO) just released its 2024 report that dives into the new trends and developments happening in the global blueberry market. 

The report opens with a series of reflections from IBO's President, Mario Steta, who sees continuous growth in the blueberry market and lists the areas that the organization believes will remain, be elevated, or be incorporated into the global blueberry industry. 

Steta explains that the ever-growing blueberry industry is currently seeing an increase in planted areas. Increased volumes, IBO states, will be increasing significantly from 2025 onwards thanks to growing areas, expansion, and acceleration in Peru, Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean, North America, and China.

New emerging regions in both Asia and Africa will add to the expected "preliminary total industry volume (fresh and processed, in 1,000 MT) of 2,050.00 for 2024, compared to 1,873.32 in 2022 and 1,818.55 in 2023."

In the highlighted trends section of the report, IBO's president listed these as the most important. 

The expansion of growing areas in traditional and new regions, the continued elevation of blueberry quality due to new varietal introductions, the reconversion of older genetics, and the importance of creativity and coordination. 

El Niño and global prices

The global fresh blueberry industry witnessed pricing disruptions in 2022/23 mainly due to the El Niño climate in the East Pacific. Peru, a leader in blueberry production and the world's biggest exporter, suffered the effects of warmer temperatures and saw a decrease in exports by 23% compared to the previous season. 

According to the report, this sent the average global price to $7.01, "a level we haven't seen before, exceeding the previous high point of $6.48 in 2016."

Related article: The uncertainty of the Southern Hemisphere’s blueberry season

However, global demand for blueberries is shown to be growing at a steady pace. Although prices increased, in 2023 the industry saw a growth in value (price x volume) of exports at a stable 8.03%, compared with 7.26% last year. 

2024 global production survey 

The majority of the IBO's second global production survey participants said that the 2023 season went as expected.

According to the report, respondents differed depending on their location. Mexican producers saw a decrease in output due to a particularly warm spring, but their evaluations remained mostly on the neutral side. China and European respondents leaned towards the positive side, and despite the shock from Peru, respondents from the country also had predominantly positive evaluations. 

The United States, on the other hand, had mixed responses. States like North Carolina and Michigan responded positively to the season, while states like Oregon and New Jersey had "lower evaluations." 

Responses from Chile, South Africa, Australia, and Morocco were mostly positive thanks to an overall successful season. 

Morale across the industry is also high. The survey asked participants how likely they are to recommend a friend or colleague to invest in, join, or work in the blueberry industry, and responses indicated very positive sentiment, "suggesting that the majority of respondents see significant value and opportunities within the blueberry sector and nearly half are strong advocates of the category."

Global cultivated production

The Americas continue to be the top blueberry-producing region. South America's total global cultivated production saw an increase in planted area production in 2023, leading the list with a total of 389.20 MT blueberry planted area, the region is followed by the United States and Canada with 346.06 MT, and Mexico/Central America with 67.67 MT. 

Asia and The Pacific hold a total of 609.65 MT cultivated area, with most of the planted areas conglomerated in Asia. 

The EMEA region cultivated production comes in third with 369.68 MT in total, with Southern Europe and North Africa on top of the list with 160.67 blueberry hectares planted. 

The U.S. state of Maine and eastern Canada account for the largest share of global wild blueberry production with the native Vaccinium angustifolium as the main species representing 95% of North America’s crop while the remaining 5% is Vaccinium myrtilloides, also known as the velvet leaf blueberry.

Exports and Imports 

Even after seeing a decrease in exports, Peru remained the top blueberry exporter in 2023 with 217.21 MT, followed by Netherlands (95.18), Mexico (83.26), and Chile (80.37). 

The United States is at the top of the list in the top 20 fresh cultivated imports by country, with 248.26 MT of fresh blueberries imported in 2023, followed by the Netherlands (104.39), and Germany (61.86). 

The main export destination for Peruvian blueberries during the 2023/24 season was the United States. The country received 56% of the total exported volume, followed by Europe with 22%, China with 12%, and the U.K. with 6%.

Peru, the largest exporter, sent shipments to 38 destinations during the 2023/24 campaign, compared to 33 in the previous season. In 2023, there was a total of 65 different blueberry varieties in Peru, a significant varietal increase in comparison to 2016, where there were only 13 varieties certified. 

Chilean fresh blueberry exports exceeded 86,000MT in the 2023-2024 season, representing an increase compared to the initial estimate and a change in the adjusted trend for the Chilean supply in recent years.