Dive Brief:

• The Chilean Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX) has asked the government to declare a national emergency after freak weather damaged crops.
• A survey of the damage will continue for the next week or more, but early estimates are that as many as 50 million boxes for fruit, worth roughly $650 million, may have been lost.
• The U.S. is the biggest buyer of Chilean fruit exports. American stores, particularly in winter months, are stocked with table grapes, apples, avocados, plums, peaches, nectarines, blueberries, lemons, kiwifruit and pears from the South American nation.

Dive Insight:

We're hopeful that surveys during the next few days will show that crop damage is not as bad as feared. But there's no reason at this point to to think that this is not shaking out to be the worst event in the history of the Chilean fruit industry. Produce buyers, consumers and others better brace themselves -- there will be fewer fruits and higher prices in the U,S. this winter.