The Spanish citrus season is now underway with a lower mandarin production and a great drop in the orange production across the country. There are hardly any overseas lots left and not much competition from Morocco is expected. Prices are higher but, for the time being, they are not making sales harder.

"The harvest has been delayed by the warm temperatures," said César Claramonte, CEO of Grupo Clasol, based in the Spanish municipality of Burriana, in the province of Castellon. "The clementine production is a little smaller than last year's, which was not abundant. Storms and hail have taken a toll on the productions in the south of Castellon, especially on the earliest varieties up to the Clemenules."

"Prices at origin are very high, and taking into account the high costs of both production and handling, packaging and transport, we believe retail prices will end up being notably higher this year," says César. "With higher prices and the delayed harvest, we fear that the demand may drop a bit."

The presence of fruit from the southern hemisphere is already "not representative" at this point. "There are still a few batches of oranges and Orri mandarins from South Africa in some European chains, but quality is highly compromised at this stage. Moreover, there is hardly any competition from Morocco, which this year will suffer a significant drop in its production and whose exports will probably focus more on the United States and Canada," said the CEO of Grupo Clasol.

As far as oranges are concerned, the drop in the production has been dramatic this season. "There is going to be a significant shortage of oranges this year, not only because of the impact of the drought, especially in southern Spain, but also because there is a lot of deformed, oval-shaped fruit. We are currently starting very slowly with the first Navelinas, which are arriving later than usual. It will be difficult to find quality lots and they will reach very high prices. The truth is that, for the time being, customers are responding well, despite oranges and mandarins being more expensive," says César Claramonte.

Grupo Clasol recently announced its merger with Cooperativa San Alfonso, which will happen gradually from this season onwards. Together, they expect to reach a turnover of 140 million Euro. "In such a difficult year due to the lack of production, the main goal will be to supply all our customers. The merger with Cooperativa San Alfonso will allow us to handle greater volumes and have more information both at origin and destination. This is going to be a tough season in many ways and will require making a great effort, but we are ready for it."

Source - https://www.freshplaza.com