Food Exports: Agricultural exports in Peru reach record high of US$10.421 billion in 2022

In 2022, Peru achieved a historic milestone in its agricultural sector, with food exports reaching an unprecedented high of US$10.421 billion, representing a substantial 13.6% growth compared to the previous year, according to a report from the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (Midagri).

Between January and December of that year, traditional agricultural food exports saw a remarkable increase, totaling US$1.340 billion, marking a significant 58.9% rise from 2021. This remarkable performance was primarily attributed to expanded shipments of unroasted coffee without decaffeination, which accounted for an impressive US$1.221 billion, constituting 91.1% of the total—a level not seen since 2012, a year marked by challenges related to yellow rust.

Furthermore, exports of refined cane or beet sugar, reaching US$72 million and constituting 5.4% of the total traditional agricultural exports, as well as sales of other cane sugar at US$11 million (0.8%), also made a noteworthy impact during this period.

Meanwhile, non-traditional agricultural food exports reached US$9.080 billion, marking a solid 9% increase compared to 2021.

Prominent products in the agricultural export rankings during this period included fresh cranberries, totaling US$1.364 billion and accounting for 15% of total sales, fresh grapes (US$1.364 billion; 15%), avocados (US$895 million; 9.9%), and fresh or chilled asparagus (US$372 million; 4.1%).

Other notable products that gained prominence for food exports in the rankings included fresh mangoes, with sales amounting to US$301 million, constituting 3.3% of the total, as well as animal feed (US$264 million; 2.9%), other citrus fruits (US$178 million; 2%), other cacao beans (US$159 million; 1.7%), ethyl alcohol (US$157 million; 1.7%), frozen mangoes (US$148 million; 1.6%), artichokes (US$129 million; 1.4%), and crude palm oil (US$125 million; 1.4%).

Destination Markets

Conversely, leading destinations for Peruvian goods included the United States, the Netherlands, Spain, Ecuador, China, England, Germany, Chile, Mexico, and Colombia. Collectively, these nations comprised 77.1% of the total export value for 2022.

In light of this, Minister of Agrarian Development and Irrigation, Nelly Paredes, underscored the exceptional performance of Peru's agriculture and agricultural exports in 2022. This achievement was particularly notable considering the challenges posed by rising fertilizer prices and the severe drought affecting multiple regions in the country.

The Cabinet member emphasized that last year's statistics on agricultural food exports reaffirm Peru's status as a significant supplier of food to key global markets, with a notable contribution from small farmer organizations.