The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released its first forecast for the 2012/13 Florida citrus season, estimating that the crop will increase by 5 per cent to 154m boxes, up from 146.6m boxes in 2011/12.
'The figure released by the USDA today is smaller than the private estimates circulating around the industry,' said Michael Sparks, executive vice-president and CEO of industry body Florida Citrus Mutual. 'It’s certainly a manageable crop for Florida citrus growers and I am hopeful at this size the market will continue to put upward pressure on fruit pricing.
'It's going to be another good year and our growers will continue to produce the best citrus products in the world,' he added.
The USDA's 2012/13 early-mid estimate is 74m boxes, down a fraction from last season, while the Valencia forecast is 80m boxes, up from the 72.4m boxes produced in 2011/12.
For Florida specialty fruit, the USDA predicts 1.2m boxes of tangelos and 4.4m boxes of tangerines, both up slightly on the previous campaign.
The USDA is anticipating that Florida will harvest 20.3m boxes of grapefruit in 2012/13, an increase from last season’s final total of 18.85m boxes.
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