Argentina has carried out its first shipment of sweet citrus to the China in eight years. A 22-metric-ton (MT) export load of W. Murcott mandarins was shipped on the Trébol Pampa and is due to arrive in Shanghai in late September.
Argentina had shipped oranges to China until 2010, but a consignment had arrived in poor condition, and exporters had decided to discontinue trade.
Other factors involved in the decision included high internal and shipping costs and exchange rate issues.
This mandarin shipment is being carried out as a trial and will serve as a guideline for planning new exports in the future.
A spokesman for the exporter said:
“The big challenge here is the journey because it’s 45 days with cold treatment, so we want to see how it arrives. We think it is a very resistant variety, so it should arrive well,” he said.