In Chile, the lack of rain hurts fruit production, according to Christian Allendez Marin, president of the Chilean National Agricultural Society (SNA). A drought may prevent Chilean fruits from being exported during the 2021-2022 season, according to industry representatives. This means a drop of 8% in revenue.
Christian Allendes Marin stated, “In terms of rainfall, 2021 will be similar to 2019, which was particularly dry. At that time, exports fell by 13% in monetary terms. Most of all, the lack of water for irrigation is felt in the central and northern regions of the country, where several reservoirs have been in emergency condition since 2019, ”
According to him, Chile’s agriculture and producers are more prepared now than in 2019, so the drought will have a lesser effect on the fruit sector in Chile.
Forecasts by SNA indicated that fruit exports might rise to over $ 7.1 billion in a non-dry year, but because of the drought, amounts are expected to fall by 8% to $ 6.5 billion.
The drought will be particularly difficult to manage for producers in Atacama, O’Higgins, and Maul.
Christian Allendes Marín continued, “Although the rains in August filled the soil with water and helped to build up supplies for irrigation at the beginning of the season, it is still not enough to last all summer. Every effort must be made to provide water to both the Chilean population and food producers, ”.
