A new report from the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service has predicted China’s total citrus production for the 2009/10 season will rise 5 per cent to 23m tonnes.
Good weather has helped the growth, but acreage has also increased 2 per cent to 2.07m ha.
Orange production is pegged to increase 6 per cent as new orchards reach full maturity, while tangerine production will grow 5 per cent.
The USDA report predicts China’s total orange and mandarin exports will hit 185,000 tonnes and 960,000 tonnes respectively, a rise of 20 and 30 per cent.
Demand from South East Asia and Russia is named as the main driver.
Pomelo exports are expected to fall 5 per cent to 97,000 tonnes on the back of lower European demand.
Meanwhile, China’s orange imports are up, but mandarins and lemons down.
