I'd like to thank you for this opportunity to give you a brief overview of the B.C. blueberry industry and our support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
B.C. Blueberry Council represents close to 800 growers who produce 96% of all the highbush blueberries in Canada. We are the largest producing region in the world and growing at a steady rate. Production from the 2013 season is estimated to be approximately 120 million pounds, of which over half is exported outside Canada. Blueberries are the number one fruit exported out of Canada at this time. The B.C. blueberry industry had initially exported produce, outside of domestic consumption, mostly to the United States of America, but has expanded to various global markets over the last 10 years, including several of the countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
In 2012 we exported 2.5 million kilograms to our second largest export partner, Japan, and 401,000 kilograms to Australia. Currently, we ship processed blueberries to South Korea while waiting for Canada and South Korea to conclude negotiations for fresh market access. In 2013 the B.C. Blueberry Council extended our long-term international strategy to include the emerging markets of Malaysia, Vietnam, and Singapore due to the interests from those markets.
One of the new challenges our industry has is the higher tariff rates compared to other blueberry producing countries. Prospective buyers comment that they see Canadian blueberries as a quality product, but the difference in cost due to these tariffs is prohibitive. This has been very evident in South Korea where Canada was building some growth and it was coming along quite nicely. Canadian product was being recognized as one to look at, but when Chile and the U.S. reached their free trade agreements, our sales plummeted due to a 30% to 37% difference in tariffs.
In closing, the B.C. Blueberry Council supports the negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership to help sustain our industry to be a healthy Canadian trade partner in the future.
Thank you.