Citrus suppliers turn to Southern Hemisphere imports

As supplies of U.S.-grown navel oranges and other wintertime citrus favorites wind down, Southern Hemisphere sources are coming into their own.

Chile, Argentina and South Africa are just a few of the sources from which U.S. importers will source citrus this summer.

Vero Beach, Fla.-based Seald Sweet International expects to have a seamless transition from programs in California and Morocco to new offshore sources no later than early June, said GT Parris, commodity manager. The company will have mandarins, navel oranges, lemons, limes and some grapefruit from South Africa, Chile, Peru and Argentina this summer.

Water tables in South Africa are pretty much back to normal as the country recovers from a serious drought situation, Parris said. Although Chile experienced freezes last year, none materialized this season.

“They’ve had good growing conditions,” he said.

Argentina was a little dry during lemon-growing season, but Parris anticipated good quality, though sizing may be down slightly, with lemons peaking on 140s rather than 115s.

Seald Sweet will offer organic lemons from Argentina and Mexico this year for the first time, Parris said.

“We’re going to be doing bulk and bags,” he said.

Argentina will ship organically grown lemons to the U.S. from June to August, and organic lemons will come from Mexico from late August to October.

Santa Paula, Calif.-based Limoneira will import lemons, oranges and easy peelers from Argentina, Peru, Chile, South Africa and Mexico mostly, said Brett Johnson, western sales and central supply chain director. Growing conditions varied by region, he said.

The company expects to have fewer imports from Argentina and more from Chile and South Africa this year.

“Size will be smaller than usual due to some areas having drought conditions,” Johnson said.

Limoneira’s imports should get underway from the last week of May to the first week of June, as usual, he said. The company expects import volume to be higher than last year, “driven primarily by round citrus.”

Increases are expected in all the major citrus items coming from Chile this summer, said Karen Brux, managing director of the Redwood City, Calif.-based Chilean Fresh Fruit Association.

Volume of clementines, which already are shipping to the U.S., is expected to be up 31% to 55,000 tons; mandarins should be up 40% to 125,000 tons; lemons will be up 33% to 56,258 tons; and oranges should be up 11% to 90,000 tons.

“One trend is obvious,” Brux said. “Mandarin volume is strengthening, while navel volume is decreasing.”

U.S. per capita consumption of fresh citrus reached 26.21 pounds in 2021, up 9% from 24.05 pounds in 2016, Brux said.

“Citrus is no longer a seasonal product,” she said. “Southern Hemisphere produce enables consumers to enjoy the great taste and health benefits of citrus throughout the summer and into the fall.”

But Parris said citrus sales have dipped a bit, probably for a couple of reasons.

Inflation and rising prices are one, and the winding down of the COVID-19 pandemic is another. Inflation tends to affect commodities that are not considered must-have items, he said.

“People right now are very conscious of their spending,” he said.

They might have to choose among apples, oranges and bananas, so they’re paying more attention to what they buy rather than simply picking up what appeals to them without looking at prices.

And Parris said some consumers who bought citrus because they wanted to adopt a more healthful diet during the pandemic no longer feel a need to eat so healthy.

But Parris said there’s some good economic news when it comes to imports. Ocean freight rates that were the highest ever last year are much lower this season, he said.

For example, an ocean shipment from South America that cost up to $12,000 last year was closer to $7,000 this season.

“Hopefully, that will impact the bottom line back to the grower,” Parris said.

Retailers and consumers generally are as receptive to imported citrus as they are to domestic product, though that can vary from customer to customer, Johnson said.

And quality of imports continues to get better, as it does in the U.S.

“Growing practices everywhere are always improving,” he said. “In order for farmers to be profitable, they have to put new technology and practices into place to compete on the world market.”

Parris said it’s hard to say whether consumers like imported citrus as much as domestic product. Personally, he said he is aware that imported produce must meet the same quality and safety requirements as that grown in California or Florida.

“I’ve never looked at it as a negative,” he said.

He pointed out that retailers often rotate imported products into their produce displays when it comes available without advertising that it is coming from a different country.