World Citrus Organisation (WCO) presents annual Northern Hemisphere Citrus Forecast

The World Citrus Organisation (WCO) has released its annual Northern Hemisphere Citrus Forecast for the upcoming season (2021-22). The Forecast, which will be presented during the second edition of the Global Citrus Congress on 16-17 November, is based on data from Egypt, Greece, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, the United States and shows that citrus production is projected to reach 29.342.000 T, which represents a 1.27 % decrease compared to the previous season.

The WCO Secretariat has released its annual Northern Hemisphere Citrus Forecast for the upcoming season (2021-22). The preliminary Forecast is based on data from industry associations from Egypt, Greece, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, in addition to the United States (based on USDA reports for Arizona, California, Florida, and Texas). Philippe Binard, Secretary General of WCO stated: “The Forecast shows that the 2021-22 Northern Hemisphere citrus crop is projected to reach 29.342.000 T, which represents a 1.27 % decrease compared to the previous season”.

Orange production is projected to decrease by 3.45% to a total of 15.485.106 T. A slight decrease is also expected for grapefruit (-0.34 %, 946.521 T) and soft citrus (-0.70 %, 8.456.112 T) production. Lemon production, on the other hand, is estimated to increase by 5.64 % and reach 4.454.327 T. In Europe Union, citrus production is forecasted to experience a 9.35 % decrease in Greece, a 7.74 % decrease in Spain, and a 2.62 % decrease in Italy. In the Southern rim of the Mediterranean, production is projected to decrease in Tunisia (-21.97 %), remain stable in Egypt (-0.06 %), and increase in Israel (+26.63 %), Turkey (+21.85 %), and Morocco (+5.53 %). The citrus crop in the United States is expected to decrease by 11.79 % compared to last year.

Mr Binard added: “WCO has also engaged for citrus with the China’s Chamber of Commerce for foodstuffs (CFNA) and Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) to collect their estimates. This has overall provided an overview of the Northern Hemisphere covering a grand total of 83.2 Mio T of citrus from the Northern Hemisphere for the next season” This is the result of the forecast in China, for an increase in citrus production by 5.23 %, reaching 53.900.000 T in the upcoming season (volumes not included in NH forecast figures provided in table below).

Natalia Santos-Garcia Bernabe, WCO’s deputy Secretary General stated: “WCO will present its Forecast during the second edition of the Global Citrus Congress, which is organised in cooperation with Fruitnet Media International and the support of CIRAD. The event will stream live on 16-17 November from London, Los Angeles and Melbourne” This is allowing viewers around the globe to pick their most convenient time to take part live or to watch on-demand. Last year’s Congress drew more than 1,300 delegates from 59 countries, bringing together producers, exporters, importers, retailers, and service providers from all over the world. 1075 delegates have already registered to next week’s second edition of the Congress. More information and last minutes’ registration are available on citruscongress.com.