Orange juice: Europe buys less and the industry becomes more cautious

The year 2026 tends to be one of the most challenging for Brazilian citrus production, according to data released by Cepea. Despite the 2025/26 crop indicating a good production volume, sanitary and climatic factors have been limiting the expected performance in the field. Researchers from Cepea point out that the productive potential has been partially compromised by high fruit drop rates. This movement is related to the advancement of diseases such as greening and canker, in addition to unfavorable climatic conditions in relevant stages of the season's development. While production faces these obstacles, the market is also dealing with a more difficult environment on the demand side. According to data released by Cepea, purchases of orange juice in Europe have been slower, which has made it difficult to negotiate the commodity at current price levels. With the weakening of sales, the trend is for the replenishment of juice stocks in processors. Researchers from Cepea indicate ...