Technical tour of the main citrus industries in southern Spain
During Democitrus in Spain, a group of various Brazilian entrepreneurs had the opportunity to visit and learn about some of the most prominent companies in the citrus sector in Andalusia
For this visit, the collaboration between the corporate team, Agromillora Iberia team and the Agromillora Produçao team was essential. Colleagues from both subsidiaries were responsible for guiding the group through the different farms over the 2-day tour and on a third day during Democitrus. The companies where on the tour where: CitroNorte, Fazenda Concorde, Frucamp, AgroNZ, CitroPar, Citrosuco,Citrosol, Fundecitrus and Cambuy.
On the first day of the tour, two farms were visited in the morning: Moratalla and the farm of farmer Rafael Calleja. Both are renowned farms in the area and the country for their innovative approaches and always being at the forefront of the sector.
During the visit to both farms, they were able to learn about pedestrian planting models, based on dwarfing rootstocks that favor the creation of a fruit wall easily accessible by harvesting personnel. A system focused on fresh production, the main business axis of the Spanish sector, which facilitates fruit accessibility and handling tasks. They also saw mechanical harvesting systems with robots and straddle harvesters.
In the afternoon, they visited the IFAPA facilities, a research center of the Junta de Andalucía, a reference in citrus research.The facilities at the IFAPA Las Torres center have several experimental plots where different rootstocks and varieties and their combinations are tested. A great opportunity to see the potential of the crop and see which rootstocks and varieties will set the trends for the future of the sector.
The second day was Democitrus, an event where various speakers and companies talked about the sector through presentations and round tables. During the event, the main situations of the sector around the world were presented, as well as the genetics and technologies that will be key in the present and future development of citrus production.
Later, in the same experimental farms of IFAPA, various demonstrations took place by a group of companies that presented some of their most cutting-edge solutions in terms of handling and harvesting. Despite the rain, the straddle harvester, one of the main attractions of the machinery, was able to operate without any problems. A key pillar for the juice industry, where, due to specific characteristics of the tree size and planting frame, the machine can pass over the vegetative walls, harvesting the fruits.
“We at Agromillora Produção were happy to participate in Democitrus 2025 in Seville, Spain. Together with Agromillora Iberia headquarters, IFAPA, Fundecitrus, and various participants from around the world, we totaled nearly 700 participants.
This event is of great importance for citrus farming in Europe and worldwide. We discovered several new developments such as new semi-dwarf rootstocks, the use of autonomous equipment, the use of tensiometer probes for irrigation monitoring, semi-mechanized harvesting with platforms, mechanized orange harvesting, and robotic harvesting.
It was a great success because we managed to bring a large delegation of Brazilian opinion leaders, and this has already started to reflect in Brazilian citrus farming.”
Carlos Bornin, technical and commercial consultant at Agromillora in Brazil
“The Democitrus 2025 event held in Seville, Spain, was very enriching, with learning in the areas of techniques, management, technologies, and innovations aligned with sustainable and efficient citrus production.
It was my first time on this international trip, along with this great event organized by Agromillora, which was very well prepared for the reception of all participants. We had the opportunity to visit orange-producing farms and learn about their techniques and management. We visited Agromillora’s headquarters in Barcelona, as well as all its facilities and techniques.
Finally, a thank you to everyone involved in this event, especially Carlos Bornin, Alexandre Chichinelli, and Joan Torrents. “
Guilherme Henrique Ferraz Campos, Concorde Citrus Group and President of ViveCitrus
