"Spain's previous citrus campaign was very irregular in terms of prices and this campaign has been marked by a serious drought in the southern part of the country and initial estimates that forecast low volumes in the first part of the campaign, so we hope to turn the Valley Gol mandarin variety into a reference in the national market," stated Jose Lopez, Citricom's sales manager in Spain.
This variety is characterized by its excellent internal and external quality, high yield, fruit size, and the moment at which it enters the market. In addition, producing this variety doesn't cost as much as producing other varieties, Jose Lopez stated.
"Producers don't have to carry out thinning procedures for this variety, which translates into great savings for farmers. It's also worth noting that Citricom continues to support small and medium farmers by not requiring a minimum plantation area," he stated.
The royalties of this variety are 2,500 euro per hectare - plus expenses - until the end of 2022. Starting in 2023, and with the aim of simplifying concepts and annual payments, the company announced that the cost will stand at 5,500 euro per hectare.
"Since we are currently still in a phase of expansion, it is a very economical mandarin when we compare it to other protected varieties on the market. We are talking about a variety that can produce up to 70 tons per hectare with 95% fruit with commercial value," he stated.
"Last year the price of the fruit closed between 0.50 and 0.60 euro per kilo, but this year, since it's an early variety and there will be a decrease in production, these prices are expected to increase."
In addition, Citricom has put a limit on the number of hectares that can grow this variety in the national territory to protect the investment of the farmers who have already planted it and the new farmers who want to plant it.
"In the end, Citricom is a company that develops new varieties and technology to manage them, so we want the farmers who decide to bet on Valley Gold to be happy with their investment. That way, they'll trust us in the future whenever we offer them another new variety," Jose Lopez said. We invite any farmer to contact us to see this excellent variety in any of our fields during this campaign," he concluded.
