Antonio Walker Prieto, the former head of Chile's National Federation of Fruit Producers (Fedefruta), has been named by President-elect Sebastian Piñera as the country's next Minister of Agriculture. 

The naming ceremony took place on Tuesday morning to confirm the make-up of the cabinet of Piñera's second administration.

Walker, an agronomist, has a long history in the fruit industry. As well as having held the role of president of Fedefruta, he also founded the Association of Fruit Producers for the Maule Region (Fruseptima).

Chile's National Agricultural Society president Ricardo Ariztía welcomed the appointment, describing Walker as "a man who is well aware of the needs of agriculture and the challenges of our sector."

"Antonio is someone who likes to work in the field and firmly believes in cooperation, in the role agriculture plays in the development of different regions, and the modernization of the sector," he said.

The incoming Minister of Agriculture has been a vocal proponent of a shift toward improved fruit varieties in Chile. He was present at the launch of Iniagrape-one and was upbeat about the Chilean-bred black seedless variety, which is now proving a success in international markets.

In a 2012 interview with Fresh Fruit Portal, he promoted fruit industry expansion in Patagonia - the southern-most part of the country where climatic conditions often make fruit-growing a major challenge - saying there was 'tremendous potential'.

The year before, he had urged the Chilean fruit industry to "ditch individualism", saying importers and exporters needed to work together to improve the effectiveness of the sector.

In the same year, when the Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) was investigating New Zealand kiwifruit marketer Zespri over alleged monopolistic practices, Walker pushed for more association and a complementary approach with Southern Hemisphere competitors.

In addition, in 2014 when Russia implemented its produce import ban from numerous origins including Europe and the U.S., Walker actively pushed for Chilean apple growers to diversify their markets and avoid oversupply problems in the EU.

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