Chilean citrus imports, primarily through ports at Philadelphia and Los Angeles will be good in June or July, although heaviest imports will occur from mid-August through October with mandarins and navels. South African imports also look good.
Mandarin volume from Chile is expected to be up 39% over last year to 63,267 tons.
That growth will fuel the second half of Chile’s easy peeler export season, which starts in late August.
Clementines, which most retailers start seeing in May, are estimated to be up 13% to 32,816 tons.
Clementines and lemons from the South American nation started about three weeks earlier than last year. Up to the week of May 2, Chile had shipped 102,000 boxes of clementines to the U.S.
In 2015, exports of all citrus items to North America reached record levels of 165,000 tons, or about 81% of all exports.
In easy peelers, Chile surpassed 55% market share last year in the U.S.
Easy peeler volume from Chile should continue to see double-digit growth. Last year, it was estimated that combined clementine and mandarin volume would reach 100,000 tons over the next few years, and the estimate for this year is already very close to that. The Citrus Committee’s official 2016 estimate for easy peelers exceeds 96,000 tons.
Total global citrus exports from Chile climbed 30% in 2015, with the largest increase, 57%, attributed to mandarins.
Imported citrus at Long Beach – grossing about $3700 to Dallas.
South African Imports
The initial container vessel of the season with South African clementines arrived in the U.S. on May 18, two weeks ahead on maturity compared to last year.
South African clementines are expected to peak in June and early July, right around the Independence Day weekend. The season shkould finish a little early due to early maturity. First navel shipments are expected to arrive June 25th with peak volumes hitting the market in July and August.