Karl Conrads, the owner of Grapasa in South America, is equally excited about the new early red selection they are also commercialising in Peru. First he reflects on the past season for producers in Peru and Chile, which had very similar challenges experienced by South Africa and Namibia.
“In Peru it was the first year with the young plants, which were well received. Normally the red varieties colour too dark but this new variety has a crunch and some other new characteristics, like a good shiny red colour and it is flavourful. The level to which new varieties have to be introduced is so much higher. In the past new varieties were introduced alongside old varieties such as Flame etc. Now, new varieties have to really be better than the other newer generation varieties,” explains Conrads.
“Last season Chile suffered from water damage due to excessive rain and this season from shipping challenges and input cost increases, including packaging. In Chile the ARRA varieties are the leaders in white seedless varieties with 90% of our growers increasing their volumes. Markets look differently at the size of grape berries. For instance in the USA they look for sizes of 20 mm and more. About 80% of the Chilean grapes goes to the USA with 10% to China and the rest of Asia. This is where the grapes must be crunchy, full of flavour and have good colour. It is all about the eating experience,” says Conrads.
Van Vuuren and Conrads agree that growers of table grapes have to take into consideration when choosing new cultivars that there are too many shipping delays lasting for several weeks more than usual.
“Cultivars must have a better shelf life while the stems must not dehydrate that easily on long shipment journeys. Early varieties are more beneficial to plant and harvest, especially during drought years and ever-changing weather conditions. Early grapes are irrigated less and on shorter cycles, while it also saves money on spraying to protect it from the changing weather conditions, as in the case of later grapes that need more water and other applications that cost more in the end.
“Growers also save on labour that can be used more effectively at the start of the season, especially in countries where there is a shortage of people. New varieties must have a Brix of +- 19-20 with a good balance between acid and sugar levels. Producers and consumers look for the balance between these two to provide an eating experience that make the grape berries pop with flavour,” explains Van Vuuren and Conrads.
This coming summer, during the July and August field days in California, Grapa is excited to be presenting five new varieties that have completed their commercial evaluation and hold characteristics and traits that the table grape sector is eagerly awaiting.