South Africa: Big sizes complicate citrus exports

Harvest of Navels has started in the northern region of South Africa and according to Arno Steenkamp it is going well. "The only problem we have is big fruit sizes, 40-64. The Middle East/Russia are looking for Navels at the moment and prices are good.

The demand is not quite there in Europe yet as there is still a lot of Spanish fruit on the market but Arno expects that to pick up in a couple of weeks. "Overall the quality of the first Navels is good with good colour, although there is some hail damage which means more classII fruit."

Small volumes of Navels are starting to come from the East Cape, where again sizes are big. Normally this would be sent to Europe, but due to the protocols for CBS only registered growers can send fruit to the EU.

Star Ruby

So far a lot of Star Ruby grapefruit has been sent to Russia/Japan and Europe. "There has also been a lot sent to Far East. Volumes are similar to last year but again the sizes are big. The markets are also changing, becoming more difficult, South Africa has planted a lot of Star Ruby in the last few years and if the weather conditions remain ideal for grapefruit, we will probably be producing too much," explains Arno.

Lemons

The lemon market is still exciting with volumes similar to last year and sizing being bigger as well this year. All markets are still looking good with less volume expected from Argentina. Argentina is the main supplier of lemons in the southern Hemisphere.
In Europe there is still Northern Hemisphere lemons on the market but demand should pick up in the coming weeks.