The departure of the Wild Cosmos vessel marked the formal beginning of the fruit export season at the maritime terminal of the Port of San Antonio. The ship sailed early this morning towards Russia carrying 5,000 tons of William's pears in its cargo.

Before, a cargo ship with 2,300 tons of pear had departed to Europe. "We are working at a good pace. Another boat that will take pears and juice to the United States has already entered the port. So we have good expectations," said Cristian López, the manager of Patagonia Norte, the firm that concessions the maritime terminal.

Lopez acknowledged that the start of the export activity was delayed due to the inconveniences registered in the Upper Valley caused by climatic factors.

At a general level, exports are expected to have a slight upturn over the previous season. "165,000 pallets of fruit were shipped out in 2018. We expect to export 10,000 more this season for a total of 175,000. Despite this increase, we will still be far from achieving the volume we shipped out in the most productive seasons," Lopez stated.

Source: Diario Rio Negro