For Homegrown Organic Farms, a California grower-shipper specializing in representing other growers since 1998, citrus is the firm’s largest category and also an area where it is continuing to see sustained growth.

Craig Morris, citrus category manager for the Porterville, CA-based firm, said the shippers expects to have about 25 percent more volume of navels oranges this year, which is its top citrus crop. “The crop looks like it is going to be about 10 percent larger than last year and, in addition, we have gained additional acreage from other growers.”

Homegrown offers organic cara caras.On the firm’s website (www.hgofarms.com), Homegrown announces that it is “growers representing growers.” The company was founded by organic growers John and Cindy France who have an “uncomprising commitment to safe food and a quality expectation that is second to none.” In 1998, they formed the company to exclusively grow and market certified organic produce. They have increased their volume and list of commodities over the years to include citrus, tree fruits, blueberries, grapes, pomegranates and persimmons.

The citrus category includes about a dozen items including Navels, lemons, Mandarins, Valencias, limes, cara caras, pomelos, blood oranges, Meyer lemons and Minneolas. And the Mandarin heading includes Satsumas, clementines, W. Murcotts and Gold Nuggets. Morris said of those varieties, the ones with significant volume increases this year are lemons, grapefruit and Mandarins, but he said Homegrown will have a representative portfolio of each of these items this fall and into next spring. Only the limes are imported, with each of the citrus crops being produced in California and/or Arizona. Meyer lemons and Minneolas are the newest items in the Homegrown lineup.

The organic category continues to gain traction throughout the produce department and Morris said Homegrown is certainly riding that crest of popularity. “I wouldn’t say demand exceeds supply in the citrus category but the demand is very strong. All of our retail partners are responding to consumer demand and enlarging their organic departments.”

He said every retailer merchandises to its own specifications with some offering separate organic sections and others marketing conventional and organic SKUs side by side. “We are not involved in that decision making, but either way can be successful,” he said. “What we recommend is using packaging strategies that allow for comparable price points.”

For example, he noted that if a retailer carries a four-pound bag of conventional Navel oranges, a three-pound bag of organic Navels can also be marketed at a similar price point. Morris said citrus is a produce commodity in which the price differential between organic and conventional is fairly significant. “It is a lot more difficult and expensive to farm organically,” he said, noting that the lack of nitrogen in the farming process greatly reduces yield per acre in a citrus grove.

The f.o.b. price is much higher as is the retail price. For the most part, Morris said the organic consumer is understanding of the price differential and willing to pay the upcharge. “The organic consumer is much more sophisticated and seems to care a lot more about what they put in their body. We note this through social media as many consumers reach out to us constantly.”