US: Mandarin demand quadrupled in past decade

This time of the year, US production of mandarins is mainly the Murcott variety. “While supplies of the imported Moroccan Murcotts are light on the East Coast and the season is winding down, there are still ample supplies of Californian Murcotts throughout North America,” says Peter Anderson with Seald Sweet International. Morocco and California’s inventories should clear in the first week of May.

“The mandarin market has been fairly steady this winter due to California’s consistent supplies,” said Anderson. “We are looking for the market to rise as supplies in the Northern Hemisphere wind down and the Southern Hemisphere starts its production season with imports into North America arriving from early May through early November.”

Consumption of mandarins has increased significantly in the past decade. To meet a 400 percent increase in demand, mandarin plantings have grown exponentially in the past 10 years in both hemispheres. “Consumers have gravitated to ‘easy-peelers’ and now, many favor mandarins over other citrus commodities because they are easy to peel and are delicious to eat, especially for children.” said Anderson. Although this is a very positive development, “at certain times of the year, it can be challenging to meet the demand for these varieties,” added Anderson.

To improve the health and well-being of the nation’s children as well as meet consumer demand, Seald Sweet launched a new brand for its easy-to-peel sweet mandarins last fall. “With its Mandarina’s™, we want to appeal to young customers,” says Kim Flores with Seald Sweet. “The packaging boasts colorful, kid-friendly graphics to promote exceptionally sweet mandarin varieties.” Seald Sweet has made the commitment to only include the best, juiciest and sweetest varieties in the Mandarina’s™ brand. In May, Seald Sweet plans on announcing the launch of the company’s newest label which is a spin-off of Mandarina’s™. The new label will market conventional clementine varieties, which are in season prior to Murcotts.

For more information:

Peter Anderson / Kim Flores

Tel: (+1) 772-569-2244