“Global market for oranges increasing, lemons headed in opposite direction”

“The global market for oranges is currently very good. Both the Middle and the Far East, the UK and the US have good demand, albeit perhaps slightly speculatively,” says Eddy Kreukniet of Exsa Europe. “But supply is lower than expected, and especially the last two South African regions have less production. This caused prices to rise sharply. The level is significantly higher than last year now, with selling prices around 13-14 euro.”

The lemon market went in the completely opposite direction in recent weeks. “The market for citrus was stronger in Europe compared with elsewhere in the world. Because of this, too much fruit was sent from South Africa, Chile and Argentina, and prices decreased sharply. Additionally, the market had some nervousness, because Spain, Egypt and Turkey have nearly arrived with their first lemons,” Kreukniet continues. “That threat also applies to the grapefruit market, which is fairly stable, but had to deal with slightly more volumes than last year.”

“Sales of tangerines are slightly better. August is traditionally a slightly more difficult month, but now that everyone is back from holiday, and the supply of soft fruit is decreasing, the market is as it should be again. Prices of tangerines had dropped somewhat, but are now recovering again,” says Kreukniet. Although the first early, Spanish tangerines are already on the market again, this hardly influences the market of overseas citrus, according to Kreukniet. “We are always pleased when the first Spanish tangerines arrive, because people can then see how good the overseas ones are. We see retailers continuing with Nadorcott as long as possible, often running parallel to Spanish fruit.”