Citrus Season

The Hon. J.E. HANSON (14:50): My question is to the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development. Will the minister update us all about the recent launch of the 2024 citrus season in South Australia?

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries) (14:50): I thank the honourable member for his interest in this topic and for his question. I am pleased to update this place about the launch of the 2024 citrus season here in South Australia.

Just yesterday, I attended the Adelaide Central Market with a range of industry representatives, including the Chief Executive Officer of the South Australian Produce Markets, Angelo Demasi, the Chair of Citrus SA, Mark Doecke, and the Chair of the Adelaide Central Markets board, Theo Marras, with a special appearance from Mr Squeezy, who was on hand to give out some of our premium citrus produce. I thought people would be excited by that; I got to spend some time with Mr Squeezy, and it was greatly enjoyable.

Food identity Callum Hann also provided a cooking demonstration using in-season South Australian citrus, and there was a juice-off between Callum Hann and radio personality Sophie Lee. The winner was Sophie Lee, but I think there was a little bit of discussion and perhaps some debate around the methods and tactics she used. However, Callum Hann was very gracious, and was happy to congratulate her as the winner of the juice-off.

This season has now officially kicked off, and I am reliably advised that we have some great coloured navel oranges and South Australian satsuma mandarins. As members in this place would now be well aware, we are fortunate to have a world-class citrus industry in South Australia that produces premium citrus that is sought after across many international markets. Here in South Australia citrus has a gross revenue of $388 million per annum and is a major contributor to the local economy. I am delighted to hear that there is anticipation of some 200,000 tonnes of citrus to be picked this season.

It was wonderful to hear, at the launch, that weather conditions during the growing periods of spring and summer have been good-quality for citrus growers, and they are expecting an above-average tonnage for the 2024 season. I think I may have accidentally referred to Sophie Lee when in fact I meant Stacey Lee, so my apologies to Stacey—it was a wonderful juice-off, and obviously I was overcome by the excitement of it and got my names mixed up.

The cold nights, mixed with the dry, warm days, have provided a good start to a range of early varieties, with the current weather perfect for producing brightly coloured fruits that result in a sweet flavour in the oranges. I am also advised that, because of the quality of the crops, there has been plenty of interest from overseas markets, with export markets already up this season and Riverland pack houses reported to be receiving very regular calls for South Australian-grown citrus.

In 2022-23, South Australian oranges, mandarins, limes and lemons represented the state's largest horticultural export in terms of volume, with 66,000 tonnes exported out of the state to the value of $121 million. I have no doubt that growers will, once again, be hoping to increase that figure this coming season. I understand there is strong demand, in particular from China, Japan and South Korea.

As we have discussed in this place previously, the horticulture industry is still in the midst of a number of challenging fruit fly outbreaks across the Riverland but, as I have stated previously in this place, the state government is supporting the horticulture industry through a number of measures. Last year, we saw the official expansion of the Sterile Insect Technology Facility at Port Augusta. This $3 million project allows for double the production of sterile Queensland fruit flies at the facility from 20 million to 40 million flies per week. Most of the sterile flies will be sent for release in the Riverland, ensuring South Australia maintains its fruit fly free status.

I continue to be excited by the ongoing opportunities in the citrus sector within South Australia, and look forward to working together with industry to deliver further growth for this wonderful industry. I encourage members in this place to play a role in this citrus season and buy South Australian grown citrus for you and your family. By 'you', I mean all members, not all of us to buy citrus for you, Mr President, although I am sure you would enjoy it and could put it to very good use.

Thanks once again to the organisers of the event to mark the start of the season and a great opportunity to talk about our citrus industry. I would also like to mention that Penny Reidy from Pick a Local, Pick SA was also a part of it, and I would certainly encourage everyone to pick a local, pick SA.