The 2015/2016 citrus season, which is about to end in Valencia, reflects a significant rise in prices of the major late orange varieties (Navel Lane Late and Navel Powell, among others) when compared to the start of this season and also compared to previous years. The decline in production, which are due to the high temperatures in May, June, and July 2015, have had an influence on the prices paid by operators in Valencia's countryside, as they are 15% to 20% higher than at the beginning of the year, according to reports provided by the Bureau of Citrus Consulate of the Lonja de Valencia.
Prices have also increased in the other two major orange producing areas of Spain (Andalusia and Murcia). The increase in prices has also been due to the pull of exports in traditional markets, as well as in third countries. According to sources of the citrus sector, the juice industry has had supply problems because of the decrease in orange production and, especially, the increase in quotes at origin.
The Zuvamesa factory, which is located in Parc Sagunt and is owned by various companies in the sector, has noticed how strong the sales of fresh tangerines and fresh oranges are.
The thrust of orange prices can also be seen in the statistics of Cordoba's Citrus market. Said thrust seems more moderate in the statistics provided by the Generalitat's Ministry of Agriculture, which establishes an average based on its weekly reports.
The council's balance
The administration governed by Regional Minister Elena Cebrian has published the data of the second gauging of the 2015-2016 citrus season in Valencia, which yielded a harvest of 3,178,687 tons. Broken down by provinces, this total is divided into 618,606 tons in Alicante, 656,946 tons in Castello, and 1,903,135 tons in Valencia.
This data confirms that there was a nearly 20% decline in production mainly due to the heat wave. Compared to the first gauging, the most notable increases took place in grapefruit and arrufatinas, which are the result of technical adjustments because the productions of these groups were superior to the balance sheet figures in the 2014-2015 campaign that couldn't be collected. The second gauging also indicated a number of technical adjustments made from information obtained after the first study was performed.
According to the secretary general of La Unió de Llauradors, Ramon Mampel, the president of AVA-ASAJA, Cristobal Aguado, and the president of the Agro-Food Cooperatives, Cirilo Arnandis, despite the increases in orange quotes, farmers in Valencia have had losses of more than 23 million because of a 30% increase in burglaries in 2016, which has left a bitter taste in this season's balance.
