Navels and citrus specialties rebound from freeze, lemons still suffer
Navels and citrus specialties rebound from freeze, lemons still suffer
As Sunkist's John McGuigan aptly put it, the devastating effects of the January 2007 freeze are now, thankfully, "in the rear view mirror," so far as most California citrus items are concerned. Navel oranges have rebounded with good volume, good quality, a generally good size structure, an early start and virtually no residual effects from the freeze, as have other citrus varieties with one exception.
The exception is lemons, which continue in tight supply and are expected to remain tight and high-priced through the end of the year.
A number of growers began packing Navel oranges and Satsuma Mandarins as early as mid-October from the southern tip of the San Joaquin Valley. "It is not the earliest start I remember, but it is one of the earliest ones, no doubt about it," said Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual.
Although as much as one-third of the on-tree crop was lost following the freeze, there was little tree damage, so the trees have been able to come back with a good crop. Fortunately, they did not overproduce. Citrus trees often "have a tendency to ... over-flower" in the spring following a hard freeze, "and then you get ... too many pieces of small fruit," Mr. Nelsen said. This year, "that didn't happen, which is a bit of a surprise." Also, "there have been times after a hard freeze when your trees will produce a less than desirable piece of fruit" that may be flavorless or even a little bitter. That, too, is not the case this year.
"This year, all of our maturity tests indicate we've got a top-quality piece of fruit, in terms of flavor, so we are excited. We are off to an early start, we are going to get some volume in the marketplace by Halloween, we are going to generate some good revenue for the industry by Thanksgiving, and we've got some good fruit to do it," Mr. Nelsen said.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service forecast for the 2007-08 Navel crop is 86 million cartons (37.5 pound equivalent), of which 84 million will be from the Central Valley. That is 26 percent above last season's freeze- shortened crop of 68 million cartons and is considered to be in the normal range.
"There is good sugar to the fruit already and decent tree color," said Atomic Torosian of Crown Jewels Marketing in Fresno Oct. 8. The company was set to begin packing Navels Oct. 15, which "is going to be one of the earliest starts on record for us."
Paramount Citrus in Delano, CA, also expected to have its first Navels available by Oct. 15, according to Paramount's David Krause. Volume will be good but "not overbearing," he said. "We should be able to meet the needs of the marketplace without a problem." Quality and size structure look "very good," and there are "no residual issues from the freeze."
"What is most exciting for me is the quality I see on our Navels this year," said Tom Avinelis of Sierra Heights Marketing in Porterville, CA, which packs organic citrus. It is "outstanding fruit" with a "beautiful texture inside and gorgeous size structure. We are probably going to peak on 56s ... which is just awesome sizing."
Growers are starting to harvest "anywhere from 10 days to two weeks earlier than they did last year," said Keith Wilson of Sunny Cove Citrus in Orange Cove, CA. "We will start the week of [Oct.] 29 on our Navel program," with Satsumas starting a few days earlier.
"Our Navels look to be peaking on 56s and 72s," said David White of Trinity Fruit Sales Co. in Fresno, CA. "It is a nice-sized crop this year, and we are expecting a very [good-eating] crop."
"Surprisingly," the Navels look good, said Justin Bedwell of Z&S Fresh in Fresno. "It is a good healthy crop." He expected packing to begin on Oct. 22. Sunkist's Mr. McGuigan characterized the Navel crop as "an average-sized crop, a good working-sized crop" with a good size structure. The early start "bodes well" for sugar and eating quality, he said Oct. 18. The packing was already underway, and "so far our packouts, even on this early fruit, have been very, very good."
Most other of Sunkist's other citrus items, particularly those grown in the San Joaquin Valley, are mirroring the Navel crop, he said. Minneolas, Cara Caras, Moro oranges, Satsumas and Pomelos [also spelled Pumelos, Pummelos and Pommelos] all have "just great looking crops, good size structure and good volumes," which will make for some "very effective" multiple-variety promotions come January, he said.
"The one crop that we seem to have a little bit of an issue with as a follow-up to the [January] weather is lemons," Mr. McGuigan said. "I don't think that I have ever seen the lemon thing be as supply-challenged as it is right now, and it has been like that almost since the freeze."
The desert lemon crop is down 60 percent from a normal year, and the San Joaquin Valley crop will be 10-20 percent light, he said. Prices are in the mid- to high-$30 range. "I would say that we will probably see some of this abnormal pricing on lemons through the end of the year."
Sun World's Mike Aiton concurred. "For Sun World and, I think, for others, our lemon crop in District Three [the desert] is very light." Blossoms were damaged by the freeze, and "most of the lemons in District Three were severely affected." He expected to see "tight supplies of lemons and extremely high prices for the next two to three months."
(For more on the California citrus deal, see the Oct. 29 issue of The Produce News.)
The exception is lemons, which continue in tight supply and are expected to remain tight and high-priced through the end of the year.
A number of growers began packing Navel oranges and Satsuma Mandarins as early as mid-October from the southern tip of the San Joaquin Valley. "It is not the earliest start I remember, but it is one of the earliest ones, no doubt about it," said Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual.
Although as much as one-third of the on-tree crop was lost following the freeze, there was little tree damage, so the trees have been able to come back with a good crop. Fortunately, they did not overproduce. Citrus trees often "have a tendency to ... over-flower" in the spring following a hard freeze, "and then you get ... too many pieces of small fruit," Mr. Nelsen said. This year, "that didn't happen, which is a bit of a surprise." Also, "there have been times after a hard freeze when your trees will produce a less than desirable piece of fruit" that may be flavorless or even a little bitter. That, too, is not the case this year.
"This year, all of our maturity tests indicate we've got a top-quality piece of fruit, in terms of flavor, so we are excited. We are off to an early start, we are going to get some volume in the marketplace by Halloween, we are going to generate some good revenue for the industry by Thanksgiving, and we've got some good fruit to do it," Mr. Nelsen said.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service forecast for the 2007-08 Navel crop is 86 million cartons (37.5 pound equivalent), of which 84 million will be from the Central Valley. That is 26 percent above last season's freeze- shortened crop of 68 million cartons and is considered to be in the normal range.
"There is good sugar to the fruit already and decent tree color," said Atomic Torosian of Crown Jewels Marketing in Fresno Oct. 8. The company was set to begin packing Navels Oct. 15, which "is going to be one of the earliest starts on record for us."
Paramount Citrus in Delano, CA, also expected to have its first Navels available by Oct. 15, according to Paramount's David Krause. Volume will be good but "not overbearing," he said. "We should be able to meet the needs of the marketplace without a problem." Quality and size structure look "very good," and there are "no residual issues from the freeze."
"What is most exciting for me is the quality I see on our Navels this year," said Tom Avinelis of Sierra Heights Marketing in Porterville, CA, which packs organic citrus. It is "outstanding fruit" with a "beautiful texture inside and gorgeous size structure. We are probably going to peak on 56s ... which is just awesome sizing."
Growers are starting to harvest "anywhere from 10 days to two weeks earlier than they did last year," said Keith Wilson of Sunny Cove Citrus in Orange Cove, CA. "We will start the week of [Oct.] 29 on our Navel program," with Satsumas starting a few days earlier.
"Our Navels look to be peaking on 56s and 72s," said David White of Trinity Fruit Sales Co. in Fresno, CA. "It is a nice-sized crop this year, and we are expecting a very [good-eating] crop."
"Surprisingly," the Navels look good, said Justin Bedwell of Z&S Fresh in Fresno. "It is a good healthy crop." He expected packing to begin on Oct. 22. Sunkist's Mr. McGuigan characterized the Navel crop as "an average-sized crop, a good working-sized crop" with a good size structure. The early start "bodes well" for sugar and eating quality, he said Oct. 18. The packing was already underway, and "so far our packouts, even on this early fruit, have been very, very good."
Most other of Sunkist's other citrus items, particularly those grown in the San Joaquin Valley, are mirroring the Navel crop, he said. Minneolas, Cara Caras, Moro oranges, Satsumas and Pomelos [also spelled Pumelos, Pummelos and Pommelos] all have "just great looking crops, good size structure and good volumes," which will make for some "very effective" multiple-variety promotions come January, he said.
"The one crop that we seem to have a little bit of an issue with as a follow-up to the [January] weather is lemons," Mr. McGuigan said. "I don't think that I have ever seen the lemon thing be as supply-challenged as it is right now, and it has been like that almost since the freeze."
The desert lemon crop is down 60 percent from a normal year, and the San Joaquin Valley crop will be 10-20 percent light, he said. Prices are in the mid- to high-$30 range. "I would say that we will probably see some of this abnormal pricing on lemons through the end of the year."
Sun World's Mike Aiton concurred. "For Sun World and, I think, for others, our lemon crop in District Three [the desert] is very light." Blossoms were damaged by the freeze, and "most of the lemons in District Three were severely affected." He expected to see "tight supplies of lemons and extremely high prices for the next two to three months."
(For more on the California citrus deal, see the Oct. 29 issue of The Produce News.)
