Moroccan clementine quality is up, says Lange's Bill Weyland
Moroccan clementine quality is up, says Lange's Bill Weyland
A joint effort to boost the quality of Moroccan clementines is apparent this fall, according to Bill Weyland, vice president of Tom Lange Co. International, based in Springfield, IL.
Producers, packers, exporters and the Moroccan government have cooperated to "implement new control processes to export product from Morocco with higher quality than past years," Weyland said Nov. 17.
At the Tom Lange Co. booth at the PMA Fresh Summit in October were Bre Engel, marketing and operations assistant, Bill Weyland, vice president, and Becky Wilson, vice president of operations.
Lange's first Moroccan clementine arrival this fall was Nov. 7, which was two or three weeks later than previous years. The extra time for fruit maturity heightened the Brix and external color, Weyland said, adding, "The quality is quite good."
Weyland has been involved with importing Moroccan clementines since 2002. He joined Tom Lange when the company's office in Woodbridge, NJ, was opened six years ago, and he created and has handled Lange's clementine import program since then.
Like the industry in general, most of Lange's wintertime clementine imports will be packed in five-pound boxes. But in December, January and February, Lange will also be packing Lange's "Seven Seas" brand in bags.
Weyland prefers handling Moroccan clementines to similar fruit from Spain for a couple of reasons. First, he said, "We have very good, long-term grower partnerships there. And Morocco has a number of varietals and so they are able to change varieties at optimum times so we can really get a good piece of fruit to the marketplace."
Morocco's clementine production is down 40 percent this year because that crop is an alternate-bearing producer, and last season saw a large crop. Furthermore, some heat damage reduced this year's crop.
"So, in the latter part of the season, we will have less exportable volume," he said. "We believe we will have late varietals into March."
This fruit imported by Lange comes from southern Morocco's scenic and historic Souss Valley.
In May, Lange's summer citrus program will start with Chile, followed by Peru.
"We are looking into opportunities to expand into Uruguay," said Weyland.
