The Lunar New Year is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated events on the Asian continent. However, in recent years it has taken on great significance in Chile. The cherry has become a very popular product in the Chinese market, which is becoming increasingly friendly towards Chile.
Quelen Fruit has not remained indifferent to this phenomenon and, during the month of January, part of its management team experienced first-hand the journey that its cherries take to reach the end consumer in China. Raúl Orellana, technical manager for quality and post-harvest and member of the delegation, talks about his experience in China and how it prepares the company for the coming season.
What was the purpose of this trip to China?
Quelen Fruit always sends personnel to inspect the fruit at its destination. As technical manager, my role is to be present in China, where we interact with our customers. The most important thing is to observe how the cherries arrive and how the different labels we have there perform.
How do you evaluate the performance of our labels?
Over the last two years we have been working to promote our Fénix brand. The feeling is that we have made significant progress and that our premium label - Fénix - is positioning itself as one of the best on the market.
What conclusions can be drawn from last season?
In terms of experience, this year has been positive. Our customers see that we are making progress in the volume and quality of our fruit. This work has taken time, but it has helped us to understand what the Chinese customer is looking for, which is consistency. So far we have managed to maintain this consistency from start to finish.
To what do you owe these results?
The most important thing in the cherry season is planning and we, as a company, are following this plan. The operations area and all areas in general have implemented a training plan during the year, which has enabled us to tackle the season optimally.
How are you planning for the coming season?
We aim to continue increasing our production volume. Chile is expected to grow in volume and we want to keep up with this growth. We have big challenges ahead of us because, besides increasing our capacity, we have to maintain the consistency and quality of our fruit.
Source: Quelen Fruit®
15 Jan 2024
We would like to inform our readers that it is possible to attend a five-lesson course on agronomic management of the cherry orchard in post-harvest. The course is held by Dr Patricio Morales, Chilean agronomist and consultant, one of the world's leading cherry experts.
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