Difficult start for early Moroccan clementine

The early citrus season in Morocco is off to a difficult start, marked by volumes halved and sizes too small for early clementines. The country's major citrus growing regions, including Souss Massa, Berkane and Marrakech, are facing this delicate situation, attributed to extreme heat and a persistent lack of water for the fourth consecutive year. Ahmed Bouljid, a packaging professional, testifies to the challenges encountered in Beni Mellal, the fourth largest citrus producing region. According to him, the heat and the rainfall deficit left their mark on the harvest, with drier clementines and smaller sizes than normal. “Unfortunately, it’s a failed start everywhere. Berkane is doing better in terms of quality, but the calibers are smaller than usual. We can therefore speak of a difficult start to the season,” he tells Freshplaza. However, Bouljid tempers the concern by emphasizing that it is still too early to predict the entire season. “We do our best to collect the best boxes ...