The 2017/18 Sicilian citrus fruit campaign has been characterised by prolonged drought.
The blood orange production is coming to an end, then it will be the turn of blonde oranges until the summer, when the fruit will have to be imported from overseas.
"The export season is almost over except for a few batches destined to Scandinavia and Germany. Unfortunately, initial expectations weren't met as prices were below what had been forecast. This is certainly due to the excess of small oranges available caused by the dry summer," explains Pietro Russo, international agricultural business expert.
"The blood orange campaign was average, which makes us rather worried about the future. Probably fruit won't meet expectations in the next period as well due to the situation the sector is in."
Pietro Russo
"We will have to bear in mind how production will be from now on, considering this is the second phase of the season with late Navel oranges. We hope it will rain a fair amount before summer, but the uncertainty about water availability is set to cause future problems."
"Foreign demand is currently very good, though the fact that grades are small is a problem. We should reiterate that the value of a fruit doesn't depend on its size but rather on its overall goodness. However, the dynamics regulating trade follow a different logic. Anyway we're at the beginning of the second phase, which will continue until late May, when blonde varieties from South Africa will become available."