Ecosac, a company devoted to grape production in Piura, obtained first place in the diversification category of the Innovate Award with its project Adaptation of seedless grapes for export in the desert of Piura.
The project was chosen among 35 selected projects implemented in recent years.
The award recognizes the success of the winning projects, as well as the impact they achieved after completion. There were five categories for the Awards: Environment, Technology, Export Diversification, and Community.
The project, which was implemented with the University of Piura, also won the special Merit 2015 award, which recognizes the originality of Ecosac's proposal and its ability to impact more than one category.
The Fund for Innovation, Science and Technology (Fincyt) and the Research and Development Fund for Competitiveness (FIDECOM), led by Produce, funded the winning projects.
About the Study
The research developed between 2008 and 2010, Adaptation of seedless grapes for export in the desert of Piura, was a comparative study of how three varieties of seedless table grapes adapted to the ecological conditions of the region of Piura and the determination of the appropriate production cycle based on international market conditions.
Juan Carlos Arbulu, of the University of Piura (UDEP), said the implementation of the project had brought many benefits, including culture protocols, adaptation, achieving crop yields of seedless table grapes; and the adaptation of this crop in Piura.
Growing seedless grapes requires the use of fewer units of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, thus improving the care for the environment.
On the social side, "it has generated more jobs per hectare and a higher percentage of female labor. Economically, the cost/benefit ratio has increased from 1.25 to 1.91; i.e. producing seedless grapes is more profitable than growing grapes with seeds" he stated.
Arbulu, who participated in the study with Alejandro Balarezo, overall project coordinator, said that, "this type of grape was grown in Ica and other regions of Peru, but nobody had tested it with the technical rigor required in a climate like Piura."
"In addition, the experience has served as a reference to encourage other companies to plant seedless varieties in the Piura region (in Chulucanas, Sullana ...) and also in the Lambayeque region," he added.
Other benefits
According to Arbulu, the implementation of the project brought other benefits. For example, he said, the achievement of working the initial 10 hectares covered by the project and adapting the product so that it is ready for the international market during the trading window (it is harvested starting October, when the price is highest), has led them to now have 270 hectares of seedless varieties.
This, in turn, represents higher profits. In addition, said the general manager of the company in an interview with Produce, the company plans to significantly increase the number of hectares planted.
Moreover, "there is more work for the people of the area and of the surrounding vicinities, and more companies are interested in investing in seedless grapes. This effect is helping to make the region of Piura one of the biggest exporter of grapes in Peru," said the researcher.
He also said the State would receive more taxes from the sales of seedless grapes so the institutions, such as Innovate Peru could continue financially supporting initiatives
"The award is a major achievement and an incentive to the effort carried out by the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration to develop support, research, and training relationships between the university and the industry that will benefit society," he said.
