Sunkist Growers, based in Valencia, CA, began shipping a couple of late-season specialty citrus varieties this month, helping to spark renewed interest in the category as winter edges toward spring.

Joan Wickham, manager of advertising and public relations for the nation’s leading citrus marketer, said both the Gold Nugget Mandarin and the Ojai Pixie tangerine offer great opportunities for promotions at both retail and foodservice. She said both items are currently in good supply and should remain in the marketplace through May.

The Gold Nugget variety Mandarin is named for its beautiful, shiny bumpy rind. It is a special late-season variety that is easy to peel and very sweet.

Wickham said the California Mandarin season began in October and this year’s crop is very strong and has fruit with incredible flavor. She said that early on growers were concerned that lack of rain might hinder the sizing of the fruit, but a good amount of rain, especially in December, brought on the size and the color of all the citrus varieties.

“Consumers love the convenience of easy-peel citrus, and at the same time they are increasingly seeking seasonal, unique produce items with distinctive flavors and attributes,” said Wickham. “Gold Nugget Mandarins answer both of these current demands, making them a fantastic item to market this time of year.”

She added that retailers can generate excitement for this seasonal favorite with displays and promotions that emphasize how unique this variety is, and that it is only available for a short time. Sunkist offers highly customizable point-of-sale materials to help sell Gold Nuggets, which come packaged in two-, three- and five-pound consumer packs as well as bulk in a carton.

The Ojai Pixie tangerine, named for the California valley in which it grows, is “a special tangerine that is on the small side and intensely sweet,” according to Wickham.

She noted that the Ojai Valley, which is less than 100 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, has a rich soil and a unique climate that creates perfect growing conditions for this variety. Sunkist sells it in one-, two- and three-pound consumer packs as well as bulk in a carton.

While retail sales are the most prevalent, Wickham said both these specialty citrus varieties, as well as other unique varieties, are finding increasing favor in the foodservice sector. She said chefs are always looking for relatively unique items that let them stand out from the crowd. Most often in the higher-end restaurants, these specialty citrus are used in salads, but the Sunkist executive said they are also finding their way into other dishes.

In fact, a Wall Street Journal  article published a couple of years ago noted that New York restaurateur and chef Sarabeth Levine of the Sarabeth chain said she loves to use citrus — specifically the Gold Nugget Mandarin — in an entrée salad.

“I took the orange segments and sliced them horizontally and placed them on top of the salad. It was so delicious and juicy,” she said in the article.

Wickham said the use of specialty citrus in the foodservice sector is a growing trend, which Sunkist is capitalizing on as it works through mostly broad line foodservice distributors to spread the word to that sector.