The Chilean citrus season started in May with clementines and lemons. The season runs till November with the export of mandarins and lemons. Chilean Navel oranges are available from June to October. “A growth of approximately 15% is expected for this year’s total export volume. Chile experienced a lot of rainfall last year, which means there is more water available for irrigation in production. We expect that this will contribute to bigger volumes of fruit, especially for mandarins”, explains Monserrat Valenzuela, the executive manager of the Chilean Citrus Committee.
The mandarins will be mostly exported, as the Chilean Citrus Committee projects 100.000 tons. “Followed by 78.000 tons of lemons, 84.000 tons of navel oranges, and last 51.000 tons of clementines. The majority of our export goes to the United States, only 6% is exported to Europe. That´s why we are looking for new markets for our fruit. One of the reasons for our presence at the London Produce Show.”
