AU: Citrus industry upbeat about season despite flooding
"I am pleased to report all the major retailers did do exactly as they promised and supported local growers. In fact, the support from all the markets was very positive and meant that the damage from the flood was not compounded through imports coming in and competing with the local product."
Also a plus is the fact that the markets are currently favourable for the fruit that did make it through the floods.
"Queensland growers have now started picking their imperial crop and, so far, the small amount of fruit that is hitting the market is doing well. It's inevitable the crop will be down from what it would have been pre-flood, but there are still expected to be good volumes of quality fruit available."
Greg says that it is too early at this stage to say whether there will be a reduction and if so by how much.
"Citrus crops aren't easy to predict due to differing size profiles, and the task is made harder because some parts of even a single orchard may have been impacted more or less by flood damage. Some growers will be down but there are reports of unaffected growers having more fruit than they thought," he says.
More good news is the recent opening of the Philippines to Australian citrus, with new markets being of the utmost importance for an industry that produces more than is required to meet domestic demand.
"The opening up of the Philippines market is good news for the industry. Every new market that we can open is a big step forwards for a country like ours where the citrus production in our season is easily outstripping our domestic consumption."
Asked whether or not the new market will have much impact on the prices in the domestic market, resulting from reduced supply, Greg says this is unlikely.
"I am not sure the Philippines on its own will make that much more of a difference to prices in Australia. A Much greater impact will be felt by the very high Australian dollar and particularly the increase there has been against the Japanese yen. Japan has been a major export destination for Australian citrus in recent years, but the exchange rate having risen by 20% since the 2012 season is likely to have an adverse impact on this important market."
Some changes in the industry have recently been reported, with suggestions emerging of a decline in navel orange production in favour of easy peeler varieties. Greg says, however, that there will always be a place for navels.
"I think the growth trend in favour of this line of fruit has been with us for a few years now. Easy-peelers are going to keep growing strongly and navel oranges are levelling off. However, I think the consumption of navel oranges won't ever die off.
It's a very good piece of fruit if it's picked in its prime, even though it's a little less convenient to eat. Growers in Australia need to make sure the fruit is not picked too early and meets the minimum standards set by Citrus Australia so that consumers aren't turned off by sour or dry fruit early in the season. Typically this has been a problem with our domestic season and can set the tone for the rest of the year, even though the eating quality improves through the season."
In summary, however, Greg says there the season is looking to be a positive one.
"In general our crop this year is looking very promising, fruit size is good and yields are on target for our easy-peelers. Fruit quality is also good given the favourable growing conditions we have had so far this year. In our region we understand navel crops might be a little lower than expected, but overall the easy-peelers are good. South Australian Riverland growers are reporting a higher yielding navel crop, which is as a result of some new plantings that were made a few years ago."
For more information:
Greg McMahon
Seven Fields Citrus
Tel: +61 (0)419 831 899
Greg.McMahon@sevenfields.com.au
www.sevenfields.com.au