The Asoex Citrus Committee is predicting a six percent increase in the volume of citrus exports for the 2021 season, estimating the total shipment volume to be 387,000 metric tons (MT).

The data indicates that the greatest increase will be for mandarins with an increase of 11 percent year-on-year, followed by clementines with seven percent growth. Lemons are expected to see a three percent increase, while oranges will stay the same.

The growth in citrus exports is due to the increase in plantations during the last decade, according to the press release.

"In total there are 22,230 hectares planted, of which 8,427 correspond to mandarin plantations, 7,376 hectares of lemons, 6,260 of oranges and 167 of grapefruit," Juan Enrique Ortúzar President of Asoex said.

The export volume of clementines is expected at 55,000MT, while mandarins are predicted to be 145,000MT.

Regarding lemons, 98,000MT is expected for this year, and oranges will maintain export numbers from last season, with shipments of 89,000MT

Ortúzar said that the favorable predictions are due to more rains in the central zone of Chile last year and the water reservoirs in Norte Chico.

"Last year's rains give us more peace of mind to face this season with less uncertainty than the last and to plan it more optimistically."

Destination Markets

The U.S. is the main destination market for Chilean citrus, receiving about 85 percent of total shipments. It is followed by the Far East and Europe, which account for about 9 percent and 3 percent, respectively.

After these markets, Canada, Latin America and the Middle East follow.

As for China, the market opened the doors to citrus last year with total shipments reaching 1,031MT of mandarins, 404MT of oranges, 46MT of clementines and 5,650MT of lemons.