Spain's gain

I just visited this afternoon with Juan Calvo of Ibertrade in New York City. Juan filled me in on the latest regarding Spanish citrus.

A few Spanish oranges may have arrived, but the container terminals are swamped so it may take some time to move them out. Most of the Spanish citrus will come by container, but there may also be some breakbulk vessels at some point, he said.
Overall, a ballpark estimate is that their may be 30 to 40 containers sent from Spain to "test the waters." That may equal about 600 pallets or about 45,000 cartons, he said. Most of the fruit arrives with the required cold treatment already finished, he said.

He said the U.S. market was "rather confusing," with high pricing after the freeze giving way to softer prices and low promotional activity now for California navels. The majority of Spanish fruit are expected to be lane late variety navels, which is considered the hardiest Spanish navel. Some of the fruit will be packed in 18-kilo cartons, but he noted the standard pack in Spain is the 15-kilo wood, and that will represent the majority of volume.
Landed prices for Spanish navels is expected to be $20 and up, he said and volume will continue for several months, depending on market conditions. Lemons will also continue with steady supply, while clementines from Spain will wind down in about three weeks.