An artistic stand to represent healthy fruit chains

'"We set up a stand in cooperation with some artists at Sial Paris 2024 to capture the attention of visitors. It depicted children drinking Sicilian juice squeezed from oranges as if they had just been picked. On the other side, we drew the sad faces of children who cannot do the same thing because - in other producer countries - the presence of residues in the fruit and in by-products is not regulated by strict rules as it is in the European Union." This is how Ortogel Srl, a well-known Sicilian brand specialising in the processing of citrus fruits, pomegranates, prickly pears and summer fruits, described its participation in the fair.

"We brought a wide range of cold-processed juices to the fair and delighted visitors with freshly-harvested pomegranates. The enthusiasm when people tasted them was evident, proving that the mix of high-quality raw material and expertise when it comes to processing yields an outstanding result. Asian visitors showed interest in prickly pears, a versatile fruit that offers many uses as a by-product, including jams, jellies and drinks. The great interest in our pomegranates was confirmed, in parallel with the difficulty that emerged on the international markets regarding the shortage of blond oranges. With regard to Italian lemon juice, the downward prices that also affected the previous campaign are persisting. This is a consequence of the low quotations of the Argentinian juice."

Lorena Smerlo, Salvatore Imbesi and Azzurra Gugliotta

"Customer interest in our pomegranate juice has grown in recent years, despite the higher prices of our production compared to foreign products. A positive differential that is repaid by the high yield of the raw material and the quality of the finished product."

"Given the small volumes of our production - something that also applies to our blood orange - the large multinationals have always been forced to turn to foreign markets which, to tell the truth, do not always guarantee high standards of excellence. We have explained that we have state-of-the-art technology that allows us to obtain high-quality juice from a qualitative and organoleptic point of view."

"As far as the volumes of the 2023/24 Sicilian orange campaign are concerned, we would like to point out that the plants least affected by the drought will harvest good-sized citrus fruits, despite the water shortage. In this case, yields will be average for a normal campaign. Having said this, the gap between large and small producers is becoming more and more evident in the citrus fruit sector, with the smallest ones suffering the most, as they have great difficulty in accessing water supplies."

"As far as the pomegranate campaign is concerned, there has been a good production and, after the initial difficulties characterised by a low juice yield and a lower sugar content, the situation has returned to normal, a sign that it was a ripening problem. The campaign will continue at least until December with the late varieties, so we remain optimistic."