South Africa is sending its last shipments of citrus to the U.S., according to fruitnet.com.

About 80 percent of the season’s exports were expected to have arrived by Sept. 13, Gerrit van der Merwe, chairman of the Western Cape Citrus Producers’ Forum (WCCPF), told the web site.

Late Navels and Midkinghts will make up most of the final shipments, expected to arrive at a port in the Philadelphia area from late September through November, the web site said.

Van der Merwe said the WCCPF modified its shipments, sending smaller amounts more frequently, the web site reported.

“Instead of in the past a shipment arriving every three or even four weeks, we chartered smaller reefer ships which have been docking every 10 to 12 days. This has worked very well for us as we have been able to satisfy demand on a continuous basis, ensuring that retailers have a reliable source of supply throughout the season,” fruitnet.com reported van der Merwe as saying.

Earlier, larger shipments of citrus to the West Coast were hampered by a big crop of Navels from California, he told fruitnet.com.

“It shows again that our strategies are always impacted on what happens in California,” Mr. Van der Merwe is quoted as saying.

Source: Fresh Fruit Portal