by Steven Nyland, OrganicCrops. Posted on 6 March 2016, 10:23 hrs
Statistics released by the United States Department of Agriculture show that Peru exported 13,760 tons of quinoa to the USA in 2015. It is the first time that Peru bypasses Bolivia (10,485 tons) in terms of quinoa export volume to the USA.
The export of Peruvian quinoa to the United States increased by 24% in 2015 c0mpared to the previous year while Bolivia’s quinoa export volume dropped by 11.3%.
Peru continues to dominate the quinoa market by offering completive bulk prices for both conventional and organic quinoa. Bolivian exporters were unable to catch up and match Peruvian export prices resulting in a substantial drop in export volume for Bolivian quinoa.
The effects of El Nino and the drop in bulk prices for quinoa will result in substantial lower export for Both Peru and Bolivia. Last years the price of bulk Quinoa dropped by nearly 60% making the cultivation and sales of quinoa less interesting for farmers in both countries. It is expected that the volume of bulk quinoa will decrease by 45-55% in 2016 resulting in yet another price increase.