Morocco has experienced a significant decrease in its orange exports in a drop to only 30,000 tons of the fruit, valued at 13.7 million USD as of the first eight months of 2023, according to data analytics platform “EastFruit.”
Local growers managed to deliver 109,000 tons of oranges to foreign markets, generating an export revenue of 71 million USD year-on-year.
“Morocco is the third largest country in Africa in terms of orange production after Egypt and South Africa. However, unlike its continental neighbors, Morocco will greatly reduce its exports of these citrus fruits for several reasons by the end of the current season. According to our calculations, the export of Moroccan oranges for the 2022/23 season will collapse to the lowest level in at least the last 8 years,” warns Fruit and vegetable Market Analyst at EastFruit Yevhen Kuzin.
In 2017, Morocco imported over 160,000 tons of oranges to foreign markets. However, sales volumes have been decreasing annually since then, reaching their minimum in 2023. As a result, Morocco has dropped from the 11th position in 2022 to the 13th place on the list of world exporters, based on data from January through August of 2023.
Unfavorable weather conditions, including climate change and water scarcity, have been the main factors contributing to the decline in orange exports. Morocco has experienced an increase in drought periods and critically high temperatures, which have negatively impacted orange production.
This decline in orange exports is not limited to Morocco alone; global production of citrus fruits has also shown a downward trend due to climatic anomalies such as droughts in Spain and Italy, hurricanes in the USA, and frosts in Turkey.
The geography of orange exports from Morocco has also become more limited. While the Kingdom supplied citrus fruits to 54 countries last year, only 44 markets had received them through the first eight months of this year. The main importers of Moroccan oranges are the Netherlands, the U.S., Canada, Mauritania, and Russia. However, these export crops have decreased across the board this year.
Despite the overall reduction in exports, Morocco’s sales to Mauritania have remained relatively stable, with Morocco easily being the nation’s main supplier in covering almost 100% of its southern neighbor’s imports. European countries continue to be the primary destination for Moroccan orange exports. Local farmers remain hopeful that after a challenging season caused by drought, the next season will bring a resurgence of the citrus industry.