The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS) recently increased its 2023–24 production forecasts for Turkish tangerines, lemons and grapefruit.
TANGERINES
Overall tangerine production is forecast to increase 55% to 2.88 million metric tons (MMT) due to favorable spring rains and temperature conditions during blossoming in March 2023.
Tangerines are the most produced citrus fruit in Türkiye, with 84% produced in the Mediterranean region. Satsumas are the most widely produced in the region. Eighty percent of satsuma production is for export.
USDA FAS reported that climate change has had a noticeable impact on the quality and quantity of fruit.
The tangerine export estimate for 2023–24 was lowered slightly to 1.1 MMT from 1.3 MMT.
Tangerine imports in 2023–24 are expected to decrease sharply to 6,000 metric tons (MT) due to a surplus of domestic production and import restriction from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). TRNC has greening disease in its citrus orchards.
LEMONS
The USDA FAS lemon production estimate for 2023–24 was revised upward from 1.58 MMT to 2.3 MMT due to unexpected high yield following favorable weather conditions during spring 2023.
In 2023–24, lemon exports are expected to increase 26% to 700,000 MT due to supply. The Mediterranean fruit fly is the reason for many rejections of Turkish lemons at European Union and Russian ports.
Lemon imports in 2023–24 are expected to decrease sharply to 1,000 MT due to a surplus of domestic production and the import restriction from TRNC. In 2022–23, Türkiye imported 3,954 MT of lemons, mostly from Brazil.
GRAPEFRUIT
Grapefruit production is expected to increase 9.5% to 217,000 MT in 2023–24 due to favorable weather conditions during spring 2023.
In 2023–24, grapefruit exports are expected to be 100,000 MT, 4% higher than 2022–23, due to expected higher export demand. The main export destinations are Russia, Poland and Ukraine.
Due to climate change, especially extreme temperatures, Türkiye is struggling to maintain sweetness in its grapefruit, and most grapefruit are sour and bitter. For this reason, Türkiye is not a stable supply market, but is a backup if the other large exporting countries are not able to produce enough grapefruit.
See the full USDA FAS semi-annual report on Turkish citrus here.
Source: USDA FAS
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