Why are the Sumo oranges horrible this year?

[Anonymous]

For the past three weeks I gave gotten really awesome sumos from the Whole Foods in Falls Church.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the past three weeks I gave gotten really awesome sumos from the Whole Foods in Falls Church.

+1

We’ve been going to WF daily to pick them up because they are so good.

[Anonymous]

I live in California and googled why the sumos are sour and this blog came up.
I had the same here, the first ones are a bit smaller and very sour, so much I do not taste orange and certainly not the super sweet taste I was expecting.
Maybe picked too early? I will wait until larger ones show up. They are way too expensive not to be correct.

[Anonymous]

LOL - I'm the OP of this thread and just had my first 2 sumos this week. Bought a total of 3 at Whole Foods and 1 was pretty good, the other so sour that I din't finish it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tough weather season?

"Originally cultivated in Japan in the 1970s by a single grower who set out to develop the platonic ideal of citrus, the fruit made its way to California’s San Joaquin Valley where it’s now grown under a varietal brand, Sumo Citrus, that boasts 13 seasons under its belt and counting. This year’s Sumo harvest is set to harvest the largest crop to date, doubling output from the previous year, according to a news release from Sumo Citrus, despite the region’s weather challenges in recent months.

“While the rain is welcome and necessary to continue California the farming industry, it can lead to some hurdles when it comes to planning harvests,” Emma Koehler, assistant brand manager at AC Foods, told The Packer. “In order to harvest citrus, the rind needs to be dry, otherwise there is risk of future breakdown of the fruit. Because of this, harvest is not possible during rain, so our team monitors weather closely to determine when and where harvest is possible throughout the last few weeks of storms. " Even with recent precipitation and flooding, the Sumo Citrus brand is optimistic."

(https://www.thepacker.com/markets/fruit/sumo-citrus-doubles-harvest-and-expands-distribution-2023-season)

TLDR: California had a LOT of rain this year, and too much rain isn’t good for citrus.

[Anonymous]

They were $4 EACH at giant. Hard pass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They were $4 EACH at giant. Hard pass.

They ring up as $4/pound. I got three today and it was about $7. They were sour though, don’t recommend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For the past three weeks I gave gotten really awesome sumos from the Whole Foods in Falls Church.

+1

We’ve been going to WF daily to pick them up because they are so good.

How much are they there?

[Anonymous]

NP - I bought some at Wegmans and Harris Teeter in the last two weeks and both were disappointing. They're too expensive to be bad!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They were $4 EACH at giant. Hard pass.

They ring up as $4/pound. I got three today and it was about $7. They were sour though, don’t recommend.

Which giant?
This says $4 each online and at the store same thing.

https://giantfood.com/product/sumo-citrus-mandarin-1-ea/221642

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just bought some tasty Moroccan mandarins at Costco.

Yes! They’re so good!

[Anonymous]

I’ve only just gotten my first batch of Sumos this season up here in Canada. They’re small but not awful? I was hopeful that they were going to improve throughout the season but now you’ve got me concerned

[Anonymous]

They are extremely tart this year. I was hoping they would be sweet this year but no such luck. Maybe they'll get better in February 2024.

[Anonymous]

The Sumos are not good this year (2024), they are hard to peel, not as juicy as usual, dry up cowards the top, not as sweet. BUT THEY ARE STILL JUST AS EXPENSIVE!

[Anonymous]

Safeway has them on sale $1.99 each but a limit of 3 and you probably need to use the all.