Chilean authorities expect the U.S. may soon lift fumigation requirements on blueberry exports from a key growing area in the country's south, the local press have reported.

Since 2013, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has applied a policy of obligatory fumigation in Chilean areas infected with the pest Lobesia botrana, otherwise known as the European Grapevine Moth.

For the growers affected, the measure not only digs into the hip pocket but can also affect the quality of fruit on arrival. In the case of organic growers, the situation is much worse as it effectively rules out access to the U.S. market unless they want to make the switch to conventional.

One of the impacted areas is the province of Ñuble, the leading production zone in Chile's top blueberry-producing region of Bio Bio.

Ladiscusion.cl reported that during a meeting in Chillan last week, Agriculture and Livestock Service (SAG) president Ángel Sartori said recent assessments made throughout the Biobio region found no detections of the pest, and the results had been forwarded to the USDA.

According to statistics from the Chilean Blueberry Committee, there are 15,600ha of blueberries planted in the country of which 4,455ha can be found in Bio Bio.

In 2015, the region shipped 7,396 metric tons (MT) of blueberries to the United States with a value of US$39.2 million, representing 70% of worldwide shipments.

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