Grape Crop & Processing - Q1 2022

Grape Crop & Processing - Q1 2022

Growing conditions for the 2022 grape crop in Argentina remain favorable and the production outlook is similar to last year according to local sources.

There is no news on the government juice / wine quota yet but wine stocks are bigger this year and domestic sales are down, so this would favor a greater percentage of grapes heading to the juice processing sector. There are still stocks from the 2021 crop in Argentina but only enough to meet demand with some limited carry over into the new crop.

The hike in price is attributed to local inflation rates and higher overheads. The country saw 51% inflation last year and devaluation was just 23%, this makes supplies expensive in USD terms. Producers in Argentina say demand has been normal for the time of year and that most buyers are covered. There are still problems with freight and containers and shipping price levels from Argentina to the US are reportedly double the level they were two years ago. Exports of grape juice concentrate from Argentina between January and December in 2021 are registering at 101,500 tonnes, against 135,300 tonnes the year before.