Due to poor harvests in Brazil and Europe, a plant disease rampant in the US state of Florida and hurricanes, orange juice is currently more scarce worldwide than it has been for a long time. Consumers will probably also feel this in their wallets soon.
The juice industry is suffering from poor harvests in numerous regions and declining stocks of orange juice concentrate in the main supplier country, Brazil, the general director of the Association of the German Fruit Juice Industry (VdF), Klaus Heitlinger, told the German Press Bureau. Orange juice concentrate is currently many times more expensive than usual on the US commodities futures exchange. “Goods are scarce and raw material costs are rising. This means that consumers must also be prepared for orange juice to become more expensive,” said the industry expert.
Gloomy situation: markets emptied
He is not alone in this assessment. The head of the German juice manufacturer Valensina, Tino Mocken, also recently painted a gloomy picture of the situation in an interview with the trade magazine “Lebensmittel Zeitung”. Orange juice concentrate prices are at record levels. Even worse: there is currently nothing to buy, the markets have been wiped empty, he described the situation.
US production: lowest in 56 years
According to the latest market report from the US Department of Agriculture, global orange production in the 2022/23 marketing season is likely to be five percent below the previous year’s level. The slumps in the US, where production is likely to fall to its lowest level in more than 56 years, are particularly severe, the experts predicted. The main reasons for this are the spread of a plant disease – so-called citrus greening – and the effects of hurricanes on crop volumes in Florida.
Global orange juice production is likely to fall by 7 percent, according to estimates by the US Department of State. Stocks of orange juice concentrates in Brazil, where 90 percent of EU imports come from, are lower than ever before.
No problems with fresh oranges
But there is also good news for citrus lovers. For fresh oranges According to the Agrarmarkt Informations-Gesellschaft (AMI), the market situation is considerably better than for juice concentrate. Because the markets for juice concentrate and fresh produce are clearly separate.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
