China has become the most important market for Chilean cherries in the Far East. Last season it accounted for 91% of the total volume shipped to that region.

China is also a rapidly evolving market, and despite the strong results of Chile's 2023-24 campaign, the industry can't rest on its laurels.

That was a message shared by Claudia Soler, executive director of the Chilean Cherry Committee, during the 5th Global Cherry Summit, hosted Thursday in Santiago by Yentzen Consulting and the Frutas de Chile committee.

"The cherry is a category that, in China, is growing and is being led by our growth," she told the more than 1,400 local and international attendees.

Part of the Chilean industry's challenge will be to maintain their cherries as a premium snack, while reaching younger consumers, and maintaining the country's position in the Chinese market.

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In her speech, Soler explained that in recent seasons, and thanks to investments in marketing and sales, the number of cherry consumers in China increased by 6 million. That number is expected to rise considerably in the next two seasons. To meet demand, Chile hopes to send 115 million boxes for 2024-25 and 125 million boxes for 2025-26.

Consumer changes

A clear trend in China is that families are getting smaller, and that's leading to changes in consumption patterns, especially among the youngest demographics. Soler said younger generations have lowered their consumption of cherries. That poses the task of finding ways to improve appeal to these shoppers.

"Young people no longer go to supermarkets. They are demanding our product through mobile apps or delivery, and this is something we also have to take care of and see how we reach them," she said.

Soler explained that consumers are more sophisticated, much more educated, and are demanding higher quality and higher caliber products.

Competition is also increasing from domestic production in China. Growers there have improved fruit quality and increased production. Other categories, like strawberries, also compete with cherries for consumer attention.

"There are premium products that want to take away our leadership position in the market," she warned.

Consumption outlook

The Cherry Committee conducted a study in China that was divided into three stages during the season. The objective was to measure consumer behavior throughout the season, observe how it varied, and adjust promotional campaigns for Chilean cherries accordingly.

"We were able to see that as the season progresses, consumers are buying more cherries more frequently, in larger quantities, and spending more on our cherries. Among the purchase decision factors, quality and freshness are elements that are always important throughout the season," she said.

"As we approach the Chinese New Year, factors such as packaging become much more relevant," Soler added, "because at that time they are giving cherries as gifts, so they are interested in beautiful packaging." 

The survey also revealed that as the season progresses, there is a willingness to buy larger sizes and that daily consumption as a snack remains year-round.

Looking to the future, Soler said that the industry has two paths. The first is to continue doing what has been done and what has worked before.

"But clearly with a market that has been changing, if we continue doing the same, we will lose value in the category or our prices will fall, because demand will also fall," she said.

The second option, Soler explained, is to listen to the market and identify opportunities and challenges. From there, the industry must do the work to increase consumer demand and, thus, keep Chilean cherry prices stable, "so that the value of our category is maintained."