New figures released by the South African Citrus Growers' Association show that lemon shippers have favoured the markets of the Middle and Far East so far this season, with produce sent to the regions accounting for 75 per cent of exports compared with 60 per cent during the corresponding period last year.
At the same time, significantly fewer lemons have been exported to Europe this season, with only 5 per cent of the 963,000 cartons packed so far heading there – down from 20 per cent at this stage of 2008.
The report confirms views expressed by industry sources prior to the start of the season which indicated that there would be much greater interest in Middle and Far Eastern markets.
'The packing season is now hotting up after the Easter break,' the group said. 'The majority of fruit packed so far are lemons, which are slightly down on last year, and Satsumas (828,537 tonnes) which are very much on par.'
The group added that the majority of Satsuma exports (70 per cent) have headed to the US, compared with 57 per cent last year, while only 5 per cent of the export crop has been shipped to Russia (20 per cent last season).
Overall, South African citrus exporters are anticipating a difficult 2009 campaign, but have pointed out that the previous two seasons were exceptional and should not be used for comparison.
'The real comparison should be drawn with the 2007 season and in terms of exchange rates and general prospects 2009 could be better than 2007,' said SAFE's Wibo van den Ende. 'It almost seems as if, after two very good seasons, we are back to normal.'
He added that rising production costs would add to an extremely challenging year.
