Lower orange production in Italy and diminished mandarin and lemon crops in Spain have contributed to what's expected to be a 2012/2013 citrus season in Europe that will have less production than the previous season.The forecast for this season's orange production is 5.6 MMT, according to a recently released report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service. Spanish growers are responsible for half of that production, and despite diminishing acreage in the Valencia region, an increase of Andalusian groves has contributed to a slight increase in production for the nation as a whole. The FAS estimated that Spanish orange production will reach 2.9 MMT this season, which would be a 5% increase over last season's totals.
But Italy, the second largest European producer of oranges, is expected to have a much different season, with less oranges than last season due to bad weather in early spring. The FAS estimated that Italian growers will produce 1.6 MMT of oranges this season, which would be a 24% decrease when compared to the 2011/2012 season.
The good news for consumers is that, despite diminished supplies of oranges this season, growing conditions have contributed to a crop with good sizing and sugar content.
In contrast to the country's orange growers, tangerine and lemon growers in Spain are anticipating shorter crops this season. With an estimated 2012/2013 production of 1.9 MMT, tangerine growers are expecting a 10% decrease from last season's crop, and at 630,000 MT, this season's lemon crop is expected to be 12% less than what it was last season.
Grapefruit, however is expected to be up 91,000 MT throughout the EU on the back of a 3% increase in production in Spain.