According to the results of the Spring 2019 Citrus Survey presented by the Office of Agricultural Statistics (DIEA) of the Uruguayan Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture, and Fisheries, citrus production in the country during the 2019 harvest amounted to 242,645 tons, i.e. 12% more than in the previous season.
“There was an increase in the production of the main citrus species (orange, mandarin, and lemon) and a decrease in grapefruit production. However, the contribution of this species to the whole citrus production is very marginal,” stated the DIEA.
Orange production increased by 8% over the previous harvest with 115,688 tons. Mandarin production amounted to 78,744 tons and increased by 11%. Lemon production showed the strongest increase with a growth of 25% and reached a total of 47,422 tons. Grapefruit production fell by 11% and amounted to 791 tons.
105,000 tons of the production was exported (43% of the total). 33% of the production was sent to the domestic market for fresh consumption, and 22% was for the industry, the DIEA stated.
The most exported species was the mandarin, as 47% of its production was sent to international markets, followed by orange (45%), and lemon (33%). Sales to the domestic market were also led by mandarin (38% of the production), followed by orange (32%) and lemon (29%).
38% of the lemon production was destined for the industry, followed by 22% of the orange production, and 14% of the mandarin production.
“The citrus area in 2019 reached 14,107 hectares. There are almost 7 million plants, 5.7 million of which (82%) are in production. The current average density is 493 plants per hectare and the overall average yield for this crop is 43 kilograms per plant,” stated the DIEA.
The highest yielding plants were the lemon plants with 68 kilos per plant, followed by oranges with 44 kilos per plant and mandarins with 33 kilos per plant.
Source: Agropages
