Chile's fresh fruit exports rose in volume and value last year, driven by surges in shipments of apples, cherries and blueberries. 

According to statistics from the country's Office of Agricultural Research and Policy (ODEPA), Chile notched a strong fruit export season for the calendar year at a level of US$4.699 billion.

This represents a rise of 4.7%, while volume was up by less than 1% at 2.656 million metric tons (MT). 

Table grapes continued to be Chile's leading export crop, holding steady at US$1.56 billion, while significant rises were seen for cherries (+43%; US$761 million), blueberries (+22.7%; US$823.4 million), apples (+18%; US$866 million) and avocados (+71%; US$334 million).

While exported representing less income overall than the big-ticket items above, several other crops received higher revenue last year including lemons (+24%; US$98.7 million), mandarins (+18%;US$124.8 million), nectarines (+16%; US$79 million).

A few crops went against the trend however, including kiwifruit (-15.5%; US$175.7 million), figs (-26.8%; US$681,541) and raspberries (-6%; US$123 million).

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