Orange juice could run out on supermarket shelves in the coming weeks, according to a statement published on Thursday, May 11, 2023 by Unijus, the interprofessional union of the French fruit juice industry. In this text, juice manufacturers report a global shortage mainly related to climatic hazards, reports BFM Business.
Catastrophic harvests
Several major regions in orange production, such as Florida, Mexico and Spain, have indeed experienced catastrophic harvests. In Florida, difficulties have accumulated with the passage of Hurricane Ian and then Nicole in September and November 2022. Added to this was an epidemic of so-called yellow dragon disease, which destroyed crops. In Mexico and Spain, drought has reduced orange production more directly.
A large part of global production now relies on Brazil, but the country has announced that it cannot "fulfill all orders that come from all continents". As a result, "orders from suppliers of pastes are now under quotas for all companies wishing to buy them, a situation never encountered by the oldest buyers!"
Shortages and price increases
In addition, with Florida moving towards real estate construction, "American juice manufacturers are turning to Brazil, a country where 85% of orange juice is driven by three players," notes Emmanuel Vasseneix, president of Unijus. In addition to the shortage, the market is therefore also shrinking, which contributes to the rise in prices. "The tonne of concentrated juice is now bought 3,400 euros, against 2,600 euros during the previous harvest," he detailed.
All these factors suggest a stock shortage and a price increase for pastes in the coming weeks, then for juices, by domino effect, a little later. A situation that should last "until September-October 2023, that is to say until the next harvest of orange juice which will begin mid-June 2023," according to Unijus.
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