The Citrus Growers Association of Peru (ProCitrus) has forecast a 10 per cent increase in Peru’s citrus exports this season compared to last.
An estimated 120,000 tonnes of citrus is expected to be exported during the 2015 season, up from 108,387 tonnes in the same period in 2014.
Healthy flowering has been cited for the increase in crops, with some 60 per cent to be exported the Europe, 21 per cent to the US and 12 per cent to Canada.
“Mandarins will grow the most, because the crops planted five years ago are now becoming more productive. Mandarin trees reach their full maturity after seven years, so production will only continue to increase,” ProCitrus general manger Sergio del Castillo Valderrama told Agraria.pe.
Peruvian citrus exports to China are expected to increase 66.6 per cent to 1,000 tonnes during 2015, Valderrama said. In increase in forecast exports follows the announcement late last year thatChina had relaxed its phytosanitary protocols for Peruvian citrus, offering a much-welcomed boost for exporters wanting greater access to the People's Republic.
