Tight labor conditions and elevated shipping container costs will again hold back exports of Australian grapes in 2021-22, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
The 10-page report on Australian grapes said the country’s table grape production is expected to increase to 210,000 metric tons in marketing year 2021-22, from an estimated 200,000 metric tons in marketing year 2020-21.
Despite expanded vine plantings in recent years now coming into fruiting, production has remained relatively flat since marketing year 2019-20, according to the report.
“Reduced labor availability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has not only impacted production but also reduced the volume of export-quality table grapes and subsequently increased the supply of table grapes on the domestic market,” the report said. “The shortage of shipping container availability and higher transportation costs (also largely attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic) contributed to lower exports in marketing year 2020-21 (120,500 metric tons) and are expected to constrain exports in marketing year 2021-22 (forecast at 130,000 metric tons).”
Those volumes are both down significantly from the export record of 152,500 metric tons in 2019-20, the report said.
