As U.S. enters peak citrus import season, Vancouver, British Columbia-based international produce company Oppy announced this season’s citrus crop from the Southern Hemisphere “has arrived with excellent quality and promotable volumes.”
“It’s a privilege to work alongside the world’s top citrus growers and bring their fruit to the U.S. and Canadian market,” says Michael Schaefer category manager. “Our trusted grower-partners remain at the heart of everything we do. Their expertise and resilience shape every season, driving the quality and exceptional service Oppy is known for.”
The company says its Southern Hemisphere citrus program includes Murcott, Tango and Daisy mandarins, and navel and cara cara oranges from Chile and Uruguay. It describes this year’s crop as having strong supply and good flavor. It also says grapefruit from South Africa has also arrived in good supply despite potential tariff challenges.
“High consumer demand for the citrus category continues with our import campaign, and while the tariffs create an additional layer of compliance, our focus remains on our products, growers and customers, and delivering the very best produce throughout the supply chain,” Schaefer says. “The diversity of Oppy’s countries of source for our import citrus program not only allows us to bring a variety of exceptional products to our customers, it also allows us to mitigate the impact of tariffs on any items.”
The company says it continues to focus on citrus varieties that drive success, such as easy peelers, navel oranges and lemons. Oppy says it expects its Fair Trade Certified easy peeler mandarins from Peru to expand significantly over the next three years. It also reports new plantings of fair trade navels in Chile.
Organic citrus is another area of expansion, Oppy reports, particularly for mandarin and grapefruit. This is fueling the company’s growing partnerships in South Africa.
“Consumer interest in specialty citrus remains strong, particularly for cara cara oranges, which continue to gain popularity in the U.S. market year after year,” says Rodrigo Lopez, category director. “Blood oranges are also on an upward trend, and Oppy will support that demand with a strong Australian program this season.”
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