A low volume of fruit in the cold-hardy citrus region is being produced for the juice market. With the current market prices for juiced citrus, that number could increase in the near future. This topic was discussed during the recent Georgia Citrus Association annual meeting in Tifton.
“With the prices today, there is a future for it,” said grower Kim Jones. “This past year was as high as it has ever been — in the $4 per gallon range. But two years ago, it was less than $2. It’s a commodity, so where it’s going to float, we don’t know.”
Jones stressed that there are factors that growers will need to consider when pursuing the juice market. Not all varieties will work, and the citrus has to produce high enough Brix (sugar level).
The main advantage to growing for juice is the fruit’s appearance. It doesn’t have to be pretty.
“In the fresh market, we’ve got to compete with California, which puts out phenomenal looking fruit but doesn’t taste as good as ours. But it looks great. They don’t have the fungus or the humidity that we do. They can grow a prettier piece of fruit,” Jones said. “But with the juice fruit, rust mites don’t matter, and wind scar doesn’t matter. Anything that’s ugly that the homeowner won’t buy can go to juice.”
An alternative to the fresh market is needed for growers who produced an overabundance of satsuma mandarins this past year. The market could not handle the amount of fruit produced in South Georgia and North Florida. It forced many producers to discard much of their crop.
“Something has to be done with the fruit we’re throwing away. The juice market will be at a lower margin, but at least growers can sell their crop,” Jones added.
For this to become viable, the cold-hardy region needs a juice processor that is centrally located.
“It’s a major investment for a juice plant. Where it’s located, centrally, so it can pull all of the fruit from everywhere is a big deal. There will be a lot of opinions on where it needs to be,” Jones said.
By Clint Thompson