Prices have plummeted! Chilean cherries are about to be launched in large quantities

It’s cherries season again. my country is the largest importer of Chilean cherries, with annual imports accounting for approximately 90% of Chilean cherries exports.

With the opening of the new production season from 2026 to 2027, the first batch of Chilean cherries shipped by air have recently cleared customs and entered the domestic market at multiple ports in Guangdong. The price of the first crop of fresh fruits is more friendly than that of the same period last year, and consumers’ “free taste of cherries” is more cost-effective.

Multi-port import of Chilean cherries by air

Completed within 72 hours from picking to market

Completed Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port transfer in 2 hours

At 8 a.m., a batch of Chilean black diamond cherries, weighing about 2.5 tons, passed smoothly through the Zhuhai Highway Port of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. This was also the first batch of Chilean cherries inspected and released by the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Customs in the new production season. The truck driver said that he picked up the goods at Hong Kong Airport at 5:30 and arrived at Zhuhai Port in only about 2 hours.

After passing through the port, these cherries will be transported to surrounding markets for sale. It will take no more than three days from being picked in the Chilean countryside to the hands of consumers in Guangdong.

Fresh products can complete customs clearance procedures in advance

Beginning at the end of last year, Gongbei Customs and Hong Kong Customs signed a "Memorandum of Cooperation". The customs information of the two places is exchanged in real time. Fruits transferred from Hong Kong International Airport are subject to segmented supervision and seamless connection.

According to An Jie, deputy section chief of the Third Section of Customs Supervision of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge affiliated to Gongbei Customs, before fresh products actually arrive at the port, companies must declare electronic data on customs declaration forms to the customs, complete customs clearance procedures such as document review and tax payment in advance, and set up a "green channel" to give priority inspection to fresh products to ensure "zero delay" in customs clearance.

Fresh fruits can be transported directly to China within 72 hours by air

In addition to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port, Shenzhen Airport also welcomed the first batch of Chilean cherries in the new production season. About 4.5 tons of fresh fruits flew directly to Shenzhen and were quickly released for sale after customs inspection.

On October 29 this year, the General Administration of Customs of China and the Ministry of Agriculture of Chile officially signed a supplementary memorandum of understanding on the quarantine of fresh fruits exported to China, simplifying labeling requirements and optimizing cold processing and quarantine rules. Currently, air-freighted cherries imported from multiple ports can be completed from picking to listing within 72 hours, and some airport ports can even complete it within 48 hours.

According to the forecast of the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association, the total output of Chilean cherries will reach 727,000 tons in the 2026-2027 production season, of which the total export volume is about 667,000 tons, a year-on-year increase of about 16%. Currently, early-maturing varieties have begun to be harvested in batches, and are expected to arrive in the Chinese market starting from the end of November.

Shenzhen Supermarket is the first to put it on the shelves

This year’s first batch of air-freighted cherries will be sold at a more affordable price

Recently, many supermarkets in Shenzhen have put Chilean cherries on the shelves, placing them in the C position of the fruit section, and the stocking volume is also increasing.

Many consumers bought it specifically to try it out. One consumer said that the current price of 29.9 yuan for half a catty is acceptable. Another consumer said that it was the first time he tasted cherries since autumn and they tasted good.

According to Bu Junyi, a supermarket manager, the first batch of orders for Chilean cherries has been 1.5 times that of last year, with approximately 400 to 500 orders being placed every day. The reporter visited and learned that compared with the price of the first batch of air-shipped cherries last year, the price of this year’s first batch of air-shipped cherries is lower:

JJ grade Chilean cherries sell for about 70 yuan per catty;

JJJ grade Chilean cherries sell for about 120 yuan per catty;

JJJJ grade Chilean cherries sell for about 160 yuan per catty.

Merchants in the wholesale market said that when they first came on the market last year, a box of 5 kilograms of cherries sold for 600 to 700 yuan. This year, the same level of cherries went on sale for only more than 400 yuan.

Efficient cross-border logistics and customs green channels continue to shorten the time for fresh fruits from the southern hemisphere to reach domestic tables.

As more Chilean cherries arrive in Hong Kong, the supply of domestic cherries in the market will continue to increase in the coming period, and the peak cherry consumption season is approaching.