Frost weather and lack of rain have not made it an easy season for tangerines. Those factors have led to a year of smaller fruit."The season has gone relatively well considering the challenges we've had," says Al Bates of Sun Pacific Shippers. "The cold weather led to some frost damage on fruit, and the minimal amount of rain we've received has led to smaller sizes." According to Bates, sizing looks to be running 1.5 to 2 sizes smaller.
Freezing temperatures could have more severely affected fruit had growers not taken measures to combat damage. But costs for this rippled out from simply keeping groves warm.
"Wind machines were run at higher temperatures, so costs for propane fuel were up," he says. Additional costs included more time spent at the packing house taking out damaged fruit.
But despite the challenges, Bates says they've made the most of a season which has been difficult.
"Aside from smaller sizes, the quality of fruit has been good," he says, "it's just been a bit of a challenge to market smaller sizes."