The first export shipment of around 7,700 tons of cherries from Chile to Shanghai via a direct route arrived last week, and passed frontier inspection and customs.
China is one of the largest import markets for cherries; the fruit usually ripens in Chile between November and March, when there is a shortage of cherries in China. Imports fill this gap. In 2018 nearly 90 percent of cherry imports were from Chile.
At the second China International Import Expo the volume of imports was increased by around 30 percent through sales agreements which were signed.
A Chinese shipping company opened a direct route called the “Cherry Express” from a port in Chile to Shanghai’s Yangshan port, taking 23 days, 8 to 13 days less than before.