Drought remains the main concern for Sicilian citrus growers

"The 2023/24 campaign for citrus fruit intended for processing ended with high quotations. It was a season characterized by the presence of a considerable quantity of fruit of extremely small size, to the extent that traders did not consider buying lots where more than 50% of the oranges were small. More often, they offered prices so low that the farmers could not cover their production costs," says Salvatore Imbesi, manager of Ortogel, a Sicilian company specializing in citrus, pomegranate and summer fruit processing.

"In a context marked by climate change," continues Salvatore Imbesi, "which has led to high production costs due to drought (there has been little rain in Sicily this winter and up to the present day), farms with reservoirs or wells had to incur significant additional costs to bring water to the surface. The industry's recall of citrus fruit at an average price of 0.30 €/kg was a breath of fresh air for farmers. Without this intervention, an even greater quantity of produce would have remained unsold compared to that which remained on the trees, further aggravating the financial situation of the producers."

"We have currently sold approximately 60 % of the citrus juice production pressed from this year's harvest. This is in the face of zero stock reserves, which has prevented us from meeting scheduled contracts for the past four years. We are still somehow managing to ensure continuity of supply, in a context where scarcity is resulting in a high price. This is the result of a series of factors, also determined by an international context in which the world quantities (from the USA, Mexico and Brazil) of blonde orange juice are 60% lower than usual."

"On the commercial side, the foreign market is at a standstill, many companies have planned vacations and reduced production schedules. In Sicily, forecasts for the next citrus campaign show volumes in the normal range, consistent with the age and condition of the plants, which are known to be productive if renewed with more resistant varieties."

"The main concern of growers for the next citrus campaign is first and foremost the drought. The hope is to draw water from the Lentini dam, which has 90 million cubic meters and was not used during the last campaign, apparently due to mechanical defects in the structure," concludes Imbesi.