Morocco has been suffering from a severe drought for the past 3 years, which is having a major impact on agricultural production. Moroccan professionals are expecting a sharp drop in the citrus harvest this season.
The local media quoted Lahbib Bentaleb, President of FNACAM, the Federation of Moroccan Chambers of Agriculture, as saying: "The situation is very worrying. Admittedly, we don't have any figures yet, but the picture looks bleak. In my experience, it's been ages since we've had such a disastrous year".
According to initial estimates, the drop in production will be substantial, especially for oranges. This will have an impact on prices, domestic consumption and export volumes. For clementines, the estimates are less negative, although the expected fall in production remains significant compared with previous seasons.
The only positive point is that tangerine production is forecast to be similar to previous seasons.