Citrus Adventures in Brazil and Chile

I’ve just returned from two incredible weeks in Brazil and Chile for the International Society of Citrus Nurseries' 2025 Congress. It was an amazing experience. I’ve come home with so many new citrus ideas to implement, along with new friends and colleagues from around the world.

Brazil: Warm, Inspiring and Orange Juice

We kicked off in Brazil with a six-day pre-tour in São Paulo State—Brazil’s largest citrus-producing region. We visited nurseries, orchards, a packing house, and research facilities. Citrus production was carried out very differently to how we do it back here in the Western Bay. Labour is very cheap, nurseries are massive, rootstocks and citrus fruiting varieties are different. The scale of orange production was mind-blowing. One nursery we visited produces over a million trees each year.

Brazil is the world’s largest grower of oranges and the biggest producer of orange juice. Interestingly, their juice often has sugar added and lacked the intense flavour of New Zealand juice. I found it a bit disappointing—definitely not as good as what we make at home or purchase from Hill Rd Orchard when in Gisborne.

Brazil’s citrus industry is heavily focused on juice production. About 85% of their citrus output is oranges, followed by tangelos at around 10%. Fresh oranges are typically bought by homeowners to juice rather than eat. Brazil grows many varieties we don’t have in NZ, and I was dying to taste them—but no such luck. The only orange I got to try was the Caracara, which we grow at home. It’s a lovely fruit with pink-peach coloured flesh, low acidity, and a delicious flavour. We have Caracara available for sale as a garden range tree.

Photo Above: Caracara from our nursery. It is often a pinker colour than this photo.

Like parts of the USA and other citrus-growing regions, Brazil battles several devastating citrus diseases. Thankfully, Chile and more importantly, NZ don’t have these, but it means Brazilian nurseries operate under strict biosecurity measures. Every tree is grown behind insect-proof mesh, and entering a greenhouse felt like prepping for a moon landing: full insect-protective gear, hats, shoe covers, and a shuffle through trays of insecticide and fungicide.

Photo Above: Some of our group dressed up in our protective gear.

Outside of citrus, some highlights in Brazil included watching wild monkeys, eating way too much delicious meat, and exploring the outdoors. Their winter temperatures were fantastic. The pool at one of the places we stayed was lovely and warm—and it wasn’t even heated!

Chile: Coastal Charm and Citrus Diversity

Chile was a completely different experience. It began with a flight over the Andes—an incredible sight. The Santiago area had similar winter temperatures to NZ, with some clear sunny days and others that were wet and freezing. No swimming there.

Photo Above: The view of the Andes as we dropped below the clouds.  

The Congress was held in Viña del Mar, a stunning coastal city in the Valparaíso region—just an hour and a half from Santiago. The hotel jutted out into the sea and every room looked down on the water. It was very flash. One of the organisers of the conference said we always like to stay somewhere nice. None of us are hard up. Well he obviously didn't know NZ is in a recession. Anyway it was an amazing place and the view alone made it hard to leave. Chile was surprisingly expensive (think US prices), but worth the trip.

Photo Above: One of the many colourful streets in Valparaiso with the Pacific Ocean in the rear.

We had a spare day between the end of our Brazil trip and the start of the conference, so I took a tour of Valparaíso. I was so lucky. I was the only one in the group, which meant I got to do some shopping and try local specialties. Valparaíso was my tourist highlight. The narrow streets, twisting alleyways, colourful houses perched on hillsides, and sweeping views were stunning. We wandered down an alley called Cat Street, where felines roam freely like they own the place—and I think they did.

Photo Above: A fisherman dropping fish carcasses into the sea for the sealions and pelicans. It was incredible to see them fighting for the food.

I also got to walk among the boats that had just returned from fishing. We watched nets being repaired, fish being filleted, and sealions and pelicans gobbling up the carcasses. An incredible experience.

The citrus diversity in Chile was more like NZ. They grew oranges, lemons, limes, mandarins, the same kumquat varieties as we do and pomelos. At local markets, people were buying sacksful of lemons for the equivalent of $6 NZD, the only thing I saw that was cheap in Chile.  We stumbled upon a street vendor selling dehydrated citrus—his mandarin slices were especially yum.

My favourite nursery was a Chilean version of ours. They grew small trees, larger ones for display in pots and gardens, and standards. It was fantastic to compare techniques, share ideas, and see trees that had been planted around 20 years ago. (See our inspiration page for photos.) I leant a lot from this visit.

Photo Above: Mandarinquats.

My lack of citrus tasting in Brazil was more than made up for in Chile. We got to try 25 different varieties currently being grown to assess their suitability for the fresh fruit market. In general, they were sweeter than NZ fruit, but I did manage to find a few that tasted just like home. There were some truly lovely varieties.

No citrus journey is complete without a fitting drink. In Brazil, it was the potent Caipirinha—bursting with lime. In Chile, the Pisco Sour stole the show: citrusy, frothy, and dangerously moreish. Let’s just say, I now know the difference between a good one and a great one.

Photo Above: Pisco Sour at the hotel in Vina del Mar