PORTERVILLE, CA – As the rest of the holiday meal planning ramps up, production is in full swing for California citrus. With the market stronger than it was last year around this time, retailers can expect promotable volumes to carry them through end of the year demand into springtime citrus appeal.
Craig Morris, Citrus Category Director at Homegrown Organic Farms (HGO), recently took some time away from the field to tell me that the company is currently settling down into the heart of the season.
“The market for organic citrus is strong, and we expect it to sit that way for the next six months. Now that we’ve reached the point where we’re picking large volumes, the prices have been set to match accordingly,” Craig says.
HGO is currently harvesting Organic Navel oranges, lemons, grapefruits, limes, Cara Cara navels, and clementines, with more varieties on the way as the company moves through the season.
Craig says that the although the company is seeing very good quality with its current pickings, and expecting even greater flavor as the season progresses, volume is down around 20 percent this year.
“Volume has been a littler lower as we had warmer temperatures during the blooming period instead of cold. As far as we can tell, this has been throughout the industry as well, but things are now coming back on track,” Craig continues.
Craig notes that domestically, demand has never been better for HGO. With a main focus on sharing its crops throughout North America, the company has noticed an uptick in Canadian retail markets on organic citrus as well.
“We’re only 20-25% through the organic citrus season, so we have a long ways to go,” Craig tells me. “The next two to three months are the ideal times to buy citrus, and we highly encourage our customers to get involved with our marketing team to further drive the category and educate consumers.”
HGO is able to deliver consistent volumes to its customers through its two convenient packing locations in Riverside and Kingsburg, California.
