ICP transitioning to Texas
ICP transitioning to Texas
International Citrus and Produce is a very apt moniker for the Burlingame, CA, company headed by industry veteran J.B. Cutsinger, who has been selling citrus for more than 35 years.
His son Jim Cutsinger, who has been in the business for more than a decade, told The Produce News in mid-September that a shift in the company’s focus toward Texas was about to take place as it always does at this time of year. “A very large percentage of what we sell (on an annual basis) comes from Texas,” he said.
After checking with several growers in that area, the younger Cutsinger said the 2015-16 crop year is shaping up to be a good one.
“The volume will be about the same as last year,” he said. “The fruit is sizing very well right now, especially the large sizes.”
The ICP salesman said that by the second week in October the company should have some oranges to sell, followed 10 to two weeks later by the famous Texas red grapefruit. Though the number of Texas shippers has dwindled over the years from more than a dozen to less than a handful, ICP continues to provide a valuable service to its California and West Coast clientele.
Cutsinger said the firm basically serves as a broker bringing in Texas oranges and grapefruit for California retailers and wholesalers. He said the company’s business is split somewhere around 60 percent retail and 40 percent to the wholesale markets.
The company keeps its customers by being a citrus specialist. “We are coming to the end of the Peruvian deal which was a stellar year for us. It typically runs from July to October and we bring in both W Murcotts and Honey Murcotts.”
Those two mandarin varieties are a great summer item and are very well received in California.
ICP is also starting its Florida citrus deal, which features some specialty items such as tangelos and mandarins, as well as other citrus varieties. Cutsinger said time will tell as to how big of a deal it is this year.
With its greening issue, Florida has to follow a shipping protocol to send fruit to California, and Cutsinger said some growers and packers merely avoid the Golden State to save themselves the expense of being certified fly-free.
But he said the volume from Texas will keep the company’s citrus sales humming for the next several months. While this year is expected to have similar volume to last, Cutsinger said many growers have increased their Texas plantings which bodes well for the future.
