Swimming in Orange Juice

This year is expected to produce another record harvest for American citrus growers.

The Department of Agriculture says the orange harvest should be around 14 million tons, 12% more than last year. A good part of that increase will come in Florida’s Valencia harvest, which is predicted to be almost 5 million tons, up about 17% from last year.

Valencias are primarily juice oranges, and futures prices for orange juice concentrate dropped 10% on the harvest news Friday to its lowest price since 1993. Things probably won’t get better soon.

“We’ve got inventories still sitting around from the last crop that we haven’t sold,” says Florida orange grower Michael Breneiser of Holly Hill Fruit Products. “Demand isn’t going to meet these ample supplies.”

A period of high orange juice prices in the late 1980s inspired many Florida farmers to plant more Valencia orchards. As these trees mature, harvests are expected to increase even more.

But while farmers in Florida are talking about gluts and falling prices, in California, where the oranges are primarily navel, the mood is much more upbeat.

“It’s going to be a tough year for Florida,” says Jonathan Roberts, varietal manager for Sunkist, a cooperative of growers in California and Arizona. “But I think with the way we’ve expanded our business, globally plus domestically, we can handle it. As long as we have a good-eating piece of fruit we can sell it. The prices may not be quite as good, but if you can sell more fruit and look at total revenue rather than a per-box return, we’re OK.”

“This year we have the potential of selling in [South] Korea for the first time,” says Bob Harz, Sunkist’s export manager. “And our prospects for China are looking quite good. I understand that quite possibly the president of China on his visit to President Clinton [later this month] will lift the embargo on California citrus.”

Of course, oranges are already quite popular in Asia. Hong Kong is the world’s leading consumer of citrus products, buying about 56 pounds per person every year.

*

Carolyn Olney of the Southland Farmers’ Market Assn. reports that Sherrill Orchards, from the Arvin area, sells apple-pomegranate and pure pomegranate juices as well as fresh apples. It’s at the Santa Monica market on Wednesday; Westwood on Thursday; Ventura and Calabasas on Saturday; Beverly Hills, Encino, Hollywood and Santa Monica on Sunday; and Culver City on Tuesday.