Growers give outlook on summer citrus deal

Good-quality late navel oranges, valencias, lemons and grapefruit will be available from California this summer, said Casey Creamer, president and CEO of Exeter-based California Citrus Mutual.

The navel orange harvest will wrap up in mid-June, when imports start arriving, he said. But supplies likely will be available for some time after picking stops.

“We haven’t had any quality issues,” Creamer said, despite cold temperatures and heavy rainfall during much of the winter and early springtime.

The biggest issue was sizing.

“Three years of drought, low water allocations and extreme heat early in the fall really impacted the growth” he said.

But growers welcomed the rainfall.

“With the amount of rain that we had, the trees are really starting to come alive,” Creamer said. “They look really healthy.”

California’s navel orange volume should be close to the industry’s early estimate: between 66 million and 70 million 40-pound cartons. That figure was up from the 60 million cartons produced in 2022 but lower than the USDA’s projection of 76 million cartons.

Fowler, Calif.-based Bee Sweet Citrus will offer customers navel oranges, lemons, meyer lemons, mandarins, blood oranges, star ruby grapefruit and valencia oranges during the late spring and summer months, said Keith Watkins, vice president of farming. Fruit this summer will have excellent flavor, he said, but size will be below average.

Picking is now underway and will continue through summer. Bee Sweet’s volume this summer should be greater than last year, Watkins said.

Santa Paula, Calif.-based Limoneira now is harvesting lemons out of the coastal district, said John Carter, vice president of citrus.

The large amount of rain California experienced this year “brought blessings and trials,” he said. “That much rain that fast has helped the fruit grow very quickly and large.”

In early May, he said sizing was large out of the state’s San Joaquin Valley, with less small fruit than usual.

“Overall grade for [the San Joaquin Valley district] is down versus historical,” he said. “As we finish up there, we should see more normal size curves out of [the coastal district].”

Limoneira harvests almost year-round in the coastal district. He said volume should be about the same or a little less than usual this summer.

Valencia, Calif.-based Sunkist Growers Inc. offers nearly 40 varieties of conventional and organic citrus, said Trent Bishop, vice president of sales and marketing.

As the weather warms up, the company will ship Sunkist lemons, California Star Ruby grapefruit and valencia oranges, the only U.S.-grown summer oranges.

While growers welcomed the ample rainfall the state received during the winter and early spring, the precipitation also brought challenges, he said.

Still, the size structure is “decent-looking,” Bishop said, and the fruit condition remains strong.

“Overall, our summer crops are in good condition, and we have the supply to meet the needs of our customers,” he said.

A large part of California’s citrus doesn’t stay in the U.S., said Creamer of Citrus Mutual.

“Export markets are an important part of the industry,” he said.

About 30% goes to destinations such as Canada, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand and Australia.

Although exports markets opened up this year after some trade issues were resolved with China and COVID-19 challenges wound down, rain delays and inflation created new challenges, he said.

Grower-shippers were hopeful for better export conditions in the future.

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Limoneira plans to promote its summer citrus by featuring colorful characters on bags of lemons, limes, oranges and mandarins with a theme of "Catch the Citrus Wave!"

An easy-to-scan QR code will take consumers to a landing page with a variety of recipes, games, coloring activities and sustainable farming initiatives, Susan Jones-Ng, director of global sales and citrus marketing, said in a news release.

The company also is hosting a summer social media sweepstakes from May to August.

And in addition to its conventional citrus program, Sunkist has a strong organic deal, Bishop said.

The company’s organic portfolio includes navel, blood, cara cara and valencia oranges, lemons, California Star Ruby grapefruit and mandarins.

“Our goal is to provide a consistent, year-round supply of almost every variety of organic citrus fruit to retailers nationwide,” he said.

Organic produce has faced particular challenges this year, since organics is the market segment most affected by economic fluctuations and consumers’ efforts to reduce expenses, he said.

“Despite these challenges, we expect to be competitive in the organic space,” Bishop said.

Sunkist recently named Christine Toy as director of organics business development.

California isn’t the only state that will have a citrus program this summer.

In Florida, Fort Pierce-based DLF International had a smaller crop of grapefruit and valencia oranges than usual this spring as a result of two hurricanes and a freeze, said Jordan Feek, marketing director.

Sizing is smaller than usual, but quality has been good, she said. Picking wound down the second week of May, but the company will ship out of cold storage through June.