Australian citrus exporters fear this year's valencia orange crop could be down by as much as 80 per cent according to the latest season update from peak body Citrus Australia.
The report cites sporadic flowering, hot days at the end of flowering and an unseasonal spring heatwave as the reasons for the large fruit reduction across most districts, the Weekly Times reported.
Industry representatives have been reluctant to predict just how large the drop will be, but exporters have raised fears of a drastic shortage of valencias for the 2010/11 period.
Australian Horticultural Exporters' Association CEO Maxwell Summers said valencias make up only a small proportion of citrus exports compared to navel oranges, but were still important.
"There are spot markets in Asia where we have some niche opportunities and there are some markets that buy our valencias specifically for the juice," he said.
New South Wales Department of Industry and Investment citrus extension officer Steve Falivene speculated that the overall citrus crop could be 50-75 per cent below average.
Mr Falivene said lighter crops were expected to occur naturally this year but the effects of the heatwave had further lightened crop loads by causing fruit to drop to the ground.
Griffith horticulturalist Andrew Creek said yields were likely to be 40 per cent below average across both navels and valencias in the Riverina region.
