Incorporation of new clementine and mandarin varieties ensures that the entire marketing season will be covered in 2025/26
The Valencian Citrus PGI season is officially underway following this week’s traditional First Cutting ceremony for the first Navelinas.
From now, the premium citrus brand will be available in markets, shops, and on supermarket shelves throughout the Valencian Community and many other parts of Spain throughout the 2025/26 campaign.
The event, which was held at Agrosol in the town of Tavernes de la Valldigna, was presided over by the regional agriculture minister, Miguel Barrachina. Other attendees included the director general of agricultural and livestock production, Mª Ángels Ramón-Llin, and various agricultural organisations, cooperatives, retailers, and suppliers.
Pepe Barres, president of the Valencian Citrus PGI, commented: “With this fifth edition of the First Cutting, we are consolidating a key event for the citrus sector of the Valencian Community.
“This event reinforces our commitment to the quality, traceability, and origin of our mandarins, lemons, and oranges. It is also a way to highlight the know-how, tradition, and dedication of the sector, while reaffirming our commitment to the consumer.”
By bringing together stakeholders involved in the different phases of the commercial process, the PGI the ceremony seeks to foster a cohesive organisation that benefits the entire sector and allows them to convey to consumers the economic, health, and environmental advantages of Valencian citrus compared to fruit from other origins.
Four additional clementine varieties will be marketed under the PGI from this season – Clemensoon, Orogrós, Sando, and Neufina – along with six mandarin varieties (Murina, Mandanova, Nadorcott, Leanri, Valley Gold, and Orri). This will cover the entire marketing calendar, from September to May, offering chains more comprehensive, stable, and continuous planning.
Lemons with the PGI seal have been available on supermarket shelves since the end of September. Clementines started arriving in October and oranges will start arriving from now on.
Retailers commit to quality seal
Supermarkets including Consum, Masymas, Carrefour, El Corte Inglés, Día, Alcampo, and Spar are regular attendees of this annual event and have shown their continued support for the PGI, selling citrus marketed under the quality seal in their stores both within and outside the Valencian Community. Other retailers such as Eroski, Plusfresc, Condis, BM, Lupa, and Alimerka also stock Valencian oranges, mandarins, and lemons with the PGI seal.
According to José Enrique Sanz, manager of the Valencian Citrus PGI, “Without a doubt, the Valencian Citrus PGI seal and the Valencian Orange brand have become a safe bet for the vast majority of distribution chains. They are attractive both for the intangible value of a certification of origin – which guarantees their provenance from the Valencian Community – and for the tangible value of the product’s quality and flavour. This combination responds to what consumers increasingly demand: sustainability, trust, authenticity, and excellence”.
