Organic mandarins in California are likely to see an earlier end to the season compared to last year. "We're moving into the tail end of our citrus season and shipping mandarins. We just finished Page mandarins and Cara Cara navels and we're halfway through our Tango mandarins," says Mason Parkinson of Valliwide Marketing Inc. "We have one final variety, Murcott, which will last us until hopefully until the end of April. However, the crop is a bit short."
Last year, the mandarin season ran until May and this year, there are a few factors contributing to the anticipated earlier end.
Earlier this season, the Satsuma crop saw its usual end but the clementine crop finished early. "The Tango and Murcotts in December experienced anywhere from 15-20 percent of the fruit dropping off the trees," says Parkinson. While an explanation hasn't been determined, there is a suspicion that a warm December meant that the trees couldn't maintain a dormant state and sloughed off the extra weight.
© Valliwide Organics
Looking ahead on demand
However, fruit quality is still good and reflected in the demand that is now starting to significantly pick up. Particularly so from East Coast customers–Parkinson says those orders are coming in for double the usual volume. It's believed that the cold weather and significant snow the East Coast saw last month and this month impacted mandarin movement at that time and it's now starting to "catch up."
So where is this leaving pricing? "It's very similar to last year," says Parkinson. "The volume everybody is harvesting per week is the same as last year. I do see that at the tail end of the season, the market will probably get better."
For more information:
Mason Parkinson
Valliwide Organics
Tel: +1 (559) 638-5595
https://www.vworganic.com/
