With organic growers scrambling to meet the demand for their citrus, conventional growers are taking note.
Even though Homegrown Organic Farms is one of the largest suppliers of organic citrus, demand consistently exceeds supply.
Sales volumes are ahead of last year, and are trending up to 20% higher compared to a normal year and all Homegrown’s specialty varieties are hot, from organic navels and cara caras to lemons and limes. In March, they will begin to offer its first substantial crop of organic gold nugget mandarins. New and transitional plantings coming online will help Homegrown increase its citrus program by 50% over the next year.
As consumer demand grows, Valencia, Calif.-based Sunkist Growers Inc. is also expanding its organic acreage. DeWolf said Sunkist offers organic navel, Valencia and cara cara oranges, w. murcott mandarins, lemons and grapefruit.
Jason Sadoian, salesman at Fowler, Calif.-based Bee Sweet Citrus, said movement is good on organic lemons, but Bee Sweet’s current program is too small to be effective. “We actually have ranches that are going to put more in the ground and others are in the final year of transitioning into organic and should be ready by next season,” Sadoian said. “By adding grapefruit, mandarins and navels we’ll be more complete organic packers,” he said.
Bob DiPiazza, president of Pasadena, Calif.-based Sun Pacific, said his company is starting to prepare land for organic production.
“We’re not in it now,” DiPiazza said, “but we will be in organics in a couple of years.”
Things are looking up for organic production. - Millet
http://www.thepacker.com/marketing-profiles/organic-produce/organic-citrus-growers-work-increase-volumes