This result benefited from a higher profit in property and material sales. Several costs were also lower, which resulted, in among other things, a recorded tax benefit of $10 million. These positive developments were, however, negated by the smaller citrus harvest.
The shrinkage became visible on a comparable basis. The company noted a comparable EBITDA of $19,6 million for the year. Over the first nine months of 2017, the EBITDA ended up at $34,1 million.
In the nine months to 30 June 2018, about 4,8 million boxes were filled with citrus. This is a drop of 36,4% for the same period a year earlier. Early and medium season production fell by 43,7%. Valencias noted a decrease of 28,5% compared to the previous year. This reduction is a direct result of Hurricane Irma.
The hurricane hit Florida in September last year. After this, Alico predicted a loss of 40 to 45% of the harvest compared to 2017. Based on the total harvest figures, this loss appears to have ended up on 36%. The Valencias can be thanked for the lower loss. These seem to have been less damaged than anticipated. Alico received a payout of about $9,4 million for various types of damages from insurers. There are still a few unresolved damage claims.
Although citrus made an important contribution to Alico's results, the company is also active in other sectors. In January of this year, they sold their livestock. They have, however, remained active in nature conservation and water management.