The Prognosfruit Conference is Europe’s leading annual event for the apple and pear sector, gathering growers from across Europe and beyond. Prognosfruit 2026 will take place in Constance, Germany, from the 5th to the 7th of August 2026, with a milestone for the event, celebrating 50 years of uninterrupted editions of Prognosfruit. Registration is now open, and stakeholders and journalists are welcome to register via the Prognosfruit website.

Prognosfruit, the leading annual event for the apple and pear sector, will take place in Constance, Germany, from the 5th to the 7th of August 2026. Prognosfruit 2026 is organised by WAPA in cooperation with BVEO (Bundesvereinigung der Erzeugerorganisationen Obst und Gemüse e.V.). Registration is now open on the Prognosfruit website.

Since 1976, Prognosfruit has released the annual forecast of apple and pear production for the upcoming season, with a conference organised in a different country each year. In 2026, the three-day event during which the report will be released will see representatives of the sector gather to discuss the Northern Hemisphere situation as well as global perspectives for apples and pears. Following the Prognosfruit Conference on August 6, the delegates will have the opportunity to participate in juice production and fruit research visits.

“We are proud to host Prognosfruit in one of Europe’s important fruit-growing regions. Lake Constance offers the perfect surroundings to discuss the future of the apple and pear sector.” BVEO Managing Director Dr. Christian Weseloh stated.

The programme of Prognosfruit 2026, the online registration form to attend the conference, and the link to book your accommodation in Constance are all available on the Prognosfruit website. Register by 7 June 2026 to take advantage of the Early Bird Fee and book your accommodation by 22 June 2026 to take advantage of the discount rates for selected hotels in Constance! Due to the “Konstanzer Seenachtfest”, the renowned lakeside festivals taking place on 8 August 2026, the city of Konstanz experiences a high demand for accommodation at the beginning of August.

Overview of Prognosfruit 2026

• Wednesday, 5 August 2026: Welcome reception at Castle Mainau, Island of Mainau by Lake Constance
• Thursday, 6 August 2026: Prognosfruit 2026 Conference, at the Bodenseeforum Conference Centre in Constance
• Thursday, 6 August 2026: Gala Dinner at the Konzil Constance
• Friday, 7 August 2026: Technical visits to the Widemann Bodensee-Kelterei in Barmatingen for juice production and to the Kompetenzzentrum Obstbau Bodensee (fruit research station) in Ravensburg/Bavendorf

Flowers of the 2023/24 crop, verified in the second semester of 2022, were considered excellent in the citrus belt of São Paulo and Triângulo Mineiro, which resulted in expectations of a good harvest. However, the weather after flowers blossomed was not ideal in many areas. Therefore, the next season may register lower supply compared to the demand.

Areas that have irrigation system (44 % of the total is located in the north of São Paulo state) registered anticipated flowers (in mid-July), and the weather was good after the blossoming. In this case, the development is considered satisfactory.

In other areas, however, scenarios were very distinct, since the rainfall was irregular and at different volumes among the regions. In the southwest of SP, flowers blossomed in late September, while it occurred in mid-October in other areas. In this case, as flowers opened in the rainy season (September/October), there had been more cases of blossom-end rot (“estrelinha”), increasing flower abortion.

Another aspect that reinforced concerns of the citrus sector in Brazil is the below-average amount of rainfall in many regions during the flower-settlement (especially in November), and temperatures were high in some moments. Thus, fruitlets dropped. From mid-December until now, rains have been more frequent, which brings relief, but are not capable to revert the scenario of losses.

In general, players expected that the 2023/24 season would be higher than the current; however, after many difficulties, opinions have started to change. The USDA released a report in December indicating that the Brazilian production may total 305 million 40.8-kilo boxes, 1.9% less compared to the current crop. It is important to mention that a more accurate forecast for 2023/24 will be possible only in mid-February.

Therefore, the scenario of low inventories at the end of 2022/23 may not be reverted in the next season. CitrusBR says that the ending stocks by June/23 may total only 140 thousand tons, lower than the strategic level, of 250 thousand tons.

Cepea calculations indicate that, in order for the volume in stocks by the end of 2023/24 (in June/24) returns to the strategic level of 250 thousand tons, the orange processing in 2023/24 may be at roughly 300 million 40.8-kilo boxes, which is equivalent to a production in São Paulo state and in Triângulo Mineiro at 340 million boxes, higher than what the USDA forecast.

TAHITI LIME – The first two months of 2023 may register high supply in São Paulo state, due to the peak period, which can press down quotations. On the other hand, as the industry may intensify processing activities and exports tend to increase in this period, the volume available is expected to reduce in the domestic market.