The Egyptian Orange Industry

Egyptian orange production in 2023–24 is projected to increase 2.7% from the prior season to 3.7 million metric tons (MMT), the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS) reported. The increase in production is attributed to optimal weather conditions and temperatures during flowering of the trees, which increased fruit set and production.

Oranges are the major citrus crop in Egypt, representing about 70% of the total cultivated citrus area.

Valencia and navel oranges are the main export varieties.

PLANTED AREA USDA FAS forecasts Egypt’s total planted area for oranges at 168,000 hectares and total harvested area at 151,200 hectares, both the same as the prior season. Due to elevated costs of cultivation and production, growers focused on increasing yields per acre rather than having new plantations.

Most of the area planted with oranges is in reclaimed lands, which account for 55% of the total area. Plantations in the Nile Delta region account for 45% of the total orange planted area.

In Upper Egypt (southern Egypt), producers prefer to plant oranges during early February. In other areas in the Delta region, the planting season runs into March. Orange trees will start producing after four years of planting, and the trees can live up to 50 years. Production decreases after 20 years.

EXPORTS EXPANDING USDA FAS forecasts orange exports in 2023–24 to increase by 25% to reach 2 MMT. This increase is due to higher yields per hectare, opening new markets for Egyptian oranges, and the success of Egypt’s traceability system in registering and monitoring farms.

In 2022–23, Egyptian orange exports reached 126 countries compared to 104 countries in 2021–22. The Netherlands, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India, United Arab Emirates, Spain, Bangladesh, Syria, China and the United Kingdom were Egypt’s top 10 export destinations for oranges.

Source: USDA FAS