After months of intense negotiations and completed with a 12-hour-long meeting in Beijing, Chinese and Peruvian authorities have agreed on a protocol for blueberry imports from the South American country.

In a release, the Peruvian Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (Minagri) said the deal was comparable to the fairly recent approval for Chinese avocado market access. 

The final documents are expected to be signed by the two countries' governments when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits Peru as part of an APEC meeting from Nov. 17-20.

Prior to the negotiations, officials from China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) visited Peru to inspect orchards and packing houses in the valleys of La Libertad, Lima and Ica.

"This achievement will make it easy to export a production of more than 4,000 planted hectares, which will generate employment for many Peruvian families, and with that better living conditions which will help reduce poverty," Pro Arandanos (Peruvian Blueberry Association) president Miguel Bentín said in the release.

Last year the country currently exported 11,327 metric tons (MT) of blueberries worldwide, with the U.S., the Netherlands, the U.K. and Canada as the main destination markets.

To date in 2016, Peru has far exceeded that figure at 17,547MT.

Bentín estimated the first shipment of China-bound Peruvian blueberries could take off in time to reach the market for Chinese New Year, which will be celebrated in late January, 2017.

To mitigate any pest risks, particularly against fruit fly, the fruit will undergo cold treatment at origin and in transit

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