After the return of rains in São Paulo, orange producers surveyed by Cepea said that flowers have been blossoming since early February in some areas, and they may refer to out-of-season fruits.
In general, players say that the volume of fruits originated from these flowers may not be high, which can be insufficient to compensate the fruitlet abortion verified in the last quarter of 2023. These new flowers bring a positive expectation, since the remuneration of oranges in the next season is expected to be good.
The orange supply was very limited in the in natura market in São Paulo in mid-February, since it is considered the offseason period. Therefore, the market has been supplied mainly by out-of-the-season pear oranges and remaining volumes of late fruits. However, some producers were already harvesting early varieties (especially hamlin and westin), in order to increase the supply.
Fundecitrus has released the third update on the 2023/24 orange crop in the citrus belt in São Paulo and Triângulo/Sudoeste Mineiro, keeping the projection of 307.22 million 40.8-kilo boxes, stable compared to the previous report, but downing 0.7 % in relation to the initial forecast and 2.2 % against the 2022/23 season.
Import Promotion Desk (IPD) presents special sweeteners and a wide variety of dried fruits from developing and emerging countries
Sweet treats are on offer at the Import Promotion Desk (IPD) stand: Arenga palm sugar and coconut blossom sugar from Indonesia and Sri Lanka as well as date syrup and sugar from Jordan and Tunisia. At Anuga, which takes place from 7 to 11 October in Cologne, Germany, IPD will also present a wide variety of dried fruits, purees and fruit chunks. Producers from Egypt, Tunisia, Colombia, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan will bring this fruity sweetness to Cologne. All in all, the import promotion initiative, a project of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), is presenting over 40 companies from 13 developing and emerging countries at Anuga in Hall 4.1, booth C91. The screened producers have a very diverse range of natural ingredients in their luggage.
Sugar from flower nectar of the coconut and Arenga palm tree
An exclusive sweetness is extracted from flower nectar of the coconut palm and the Arenga palm, which is processed into sugar without the addition of additives. Both types of sugar have a malty, caramel-like aroma and are less sweet than household sugar. The producers from Sri Lanka and Indonesia offer their sugar varieties in organic quality. Moreover, the products are HACCP and ISO 22000 certified. Besides granulated sugar, the companies also have syrup and block sugar in their product range. Exhibitors from Tunisia and Jordan process dates into syrup and sugar. The sweeteners have significantly fewer calories than household sugar. Syrup and sugar consist mainly of fructose and retain the typical date flavour. The producers also offer a wide range of date products – such as date coffee and date ketchup! The companies are HACCP, ISO or FSCC 22000 certified.
Sweetness from special fruit variations
A wide range of processed fruits will be presented by the IPD companies at Anuga this year. Freeze-dried strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and currants come from Uzbekistan. An Egyptian company is using the freeze-drying process for strawberries, mangoes, citrus fruits and pineapples. Dried mangoes and pineapples come from Ghana. Tunisian producers offer dates and various types of figs. An IPD company from Sri Lanka provides special sweetness: it produces dried jackfruit. And a Colombian company presents juicy pieces of mangoes, papaya, pineapple, bananas and passion fruit and frozen fruit purees.
In addition, the IPD will be presenting carefully selected suppliers of these products at Anuga Cologne in Hall 4.1, booth C91: Spices, such as cinnamon, ginger, chili or vanilla beans, as well as a wide variety of nuts, oil seeds or oils such as argan, avocado or coconut oil.
Amid low rainfall in São Paulo State since the end of the Summer (in late March), farmers have been concerned about the effects of the current lack of moisture on orange trees. According to Inmet (Brazilian Institute of Meteorology), it has not rained in SP for 50 days, the longest drought since 2012. To make things worse, last month was the hottest July in SP in all times.
For the oranges still on tree (from the 2022/23 season), although major damages have not been reported, the drought is concerning. In dry-land groves, some fruits wilted, reducing both quality and size for the in natura market, making them only suitable to the industry. Besides, some oranges and leaves fell off due to high water stress.
Also, the effects of greening on oranges have increased this year in many Brazilian areas. It is important to consider that, according to Fundecitrus, last year, greening affected 22.37 % of the orange trees in SP, the highest average.
On the other hand, the lack of rains is necessary to cause groves some water stress, which is crucial for blooming. According to Cepea collaborators, in northern SP, where groves are irrigated, many farmers began irrigating the plants in mid-June, and trees are now beginning to bloom. In these areas, conditions have been favourable so far. In dry-land groves, blooming is expected to occur as soon as it rains in the citrus belt.
BRAZILIAN MARKET IN JULY – The demand for citrus increased in Brazil in July, favoured by the atypical warm weather during the month. On the other hand, although the orange harvesting was in full swing in SP last month, industries’ purchases were high, which pushed up quotations.
EARI Beverage Group, a diversified beverage and media group, announces the acquisition of the Blossom Botanical Water Brand.
Adding to the EARI Beverage Group portfolio, the acquisition of Blossom Botanical Water expands the footprint in the functional and craft beverage market segments. The Blossom brand fits perfectly with EARI’s strategy of identifying and acquiring brands in high-growth categories that have proven operating models and clear consumer acceptance. Blossom is credited with creating a new sub-category of plant-based waters using botanicals. The brand has distribution along the US East Coast and Midwest and has generated roughly USD 4 million in gross sales since inception.
About Blossom Botanical Water
Founded in Massachusetts 10 years ago and inspired by nature, Blossom Botanical Water is distinguished by its use of flower botanicals as a key flavour component across its portfolio of products. At only 20 calories per 16.9 oz bottle, it’s a delicious, healthy alternative to both plain water and high-sugar sodas or juices. Blossom infuses pure spring water with the taste and aroma extracted from real blossoms, then uses a complementary fruit to create five hand-crafted unique flavours of distinctive appeal: Lemon Rose, Plum Jasmine, Mango Hibiscus, Pomegranate Geranium and Grapefruit Lilac. Blossom Water is further enhanced for your health by providing scientifically proven benefit to strengthen immunity, the body’s best defense for maintaining wellness and vitality. Each bottle contains as much immune system support as 1 billion CFUs of probiotic from the strain Bacillus coagulants GBI-30 6086. Blossom Water’s drinks are certified non-GMO and free of gluten, caffeine, and sodium. They have no artificial flavours, sweeteners, colours, or preservatives, and they are kosher and vegan.
