Newsletter 173– 10.15.2024
Colombia is the second most populated country in Latin America with 52 million inhabitants, only surpassed by Brazil. Its surface is 1,141 million km2 makes it the 4th largest country in the region and 2nd more densely populated behind Ecuador. It has various peculiarities. Despite being the most stable democracy of Latin America, for 50 years the country was crossed by conflicts with armed groups. However, the panorama has changed in recent years, due to frontal combat with these groups and a sustained economic opening process.
Its location in an intertopical zone guarantees high irradiation and an average high temperature throughout the year. It also has one of the lowest water stress levels in the region. This allows you to sustain farms throughout the year and take advantage of the production windows of other countries. Additionally, being a mountainous country, it presents different thermal floors that allow it to exploit different varieties of products. In this sense, fruit production stands out especially is the Andean and Amazon regions, and to a lesser extent in the Caribbean region, being a more marginal production in the Pacific and Orinoquia region. According to FAO, Colombia concentrates more than 50% of the land with agricultural potential that is not yet exploited, so the expansion capacity of the sector is still very important.
Connectivity is also a competitiveness factor, either by air or sea. Their geographical position gives them good access to the markets of the northern hemisphere: ships can be in the United States in 5 days or in the Netherlands in 12. The main connection ports are that of Cartagena and Barranquilla, both with exit to the sea Caribbean/Atlantic; but it also has ports on the Pacific.
The country is emerging as one of the main suppliers of fruits and vegetables in the world for the coming years, having good entry in high quality markets. The fresh fruits and vegetable market in 2024 is estimated in a size of 6.4 billion dollars, and it is expected to grow at a rate of 4.9% per year over the next 5 years.
Local production is being strongly stimulated from the government with different initiatives that point not only to increase production, but to improve the quality of life and income of Colombian farmers. There are also specialized entities that provide support in health and safety, R&D, productive system and financing, among others.
An interesting fact is that in the country there are more than 400 edible native fruits identified, making it the first country in the world into biodiversity of fruits per square kilometer. However, many are little known or are not exploited on a commercial scale.
Among its products are fruits such as banana, mango, pineapple, papaya, strawberry and avocado. Undoubtedly, the star cultivation of the region is banana, given its high exportable production and its wide distribution network. Colombia is the fifth largest banana exporter globally, exporting more than 90% of its production. From that total exporting more than half is destined to Europe and the United States. It is also an important supplier in the global avocado market, beingamong the top 5 world exporters.
Additionally, fruit consumption is increasing in the country due to the higher consideration of healthy eating among consumers. This growing demand for fresh products has driven imports to the point that they have increased at a higher rate than the global one. This import increase is strongly based on retail market chains, which have expanded strongly throughout the country.
Among the fruits that import the country most of you find fresh apples and pears, grapes, mangoes and mangostinos, among others. As importer market, Colombia is a special interest for Latin American countries. In the case of apples, buy Chile and something from Brazil. This fruit is by far the most consumed of imported fruits. Also shopping from Chile and to a lesser extent from Argentina. In grapes, the main suppliers are Peru and Chile, followed by Argentina and Ecuador. In terms of citrus, he buys mainly tangerines from Peru and Chile (and occasionally from Uruguay), since local tangerines are not of good quality.
