Rosy Red Details
Rosy Red Valencia is a pigmented variety of valencia orange that is now available to be planted by commercial growers. This exciting new offering aligns with the higher market value and health benefits of similar pigmented fruit. The blush color of the flesh and juice of Rosy Red is lycopene based and was found to contain significant levels of beta-carotene. Sugar and acid testing on Rosy Red reveals a sugar-to-acid ratio similar to the Olinda Valencia, resulting in delicious fruit and juice. The flesh and rind of the fruit glow with a soft rosy blush, making Rosy Red beautiful both inside and out.
Leaves
At first glance, the Rosy Red tree may be one of the most unusual citrus trees you’ll ever see. The tree mutation not only affects the fruit, juice, and rind color, but Rosy Red also has an unusual foliage pattern. The mutation causes the leaves to be pointy and variegated, but this is the normal look of the Rosy Red tree. The initial flush of the leaves is pale in color and becomes more green with time. Initially, the foliage looks like it has been chomped by thrip. Despite its unusual leaf formation, the tree grows vigorously and produces lots of fruit. The commercial 10-acre block is planted with both Rich 16 and Carrizo rootstocks. The trees are growing similarly given the usual rootstock characteristics. Watch our video.
Harvest
July 15, 2023, was the date of the first commercial harvest of the Rosy Red (10 acres were planted in 2019/2020 on Rich 16 and Carrizo rootstocks). That day, 33 tons of fruit were picked and packed in the official Rosy Red Valencia box by Suntreat packing house. The harvested fruit looked very pretty in the box and was well-received by the buyers.
April 30, 2024 was the date of the second commercial harvest of the Rosy Red. That same 10 acres produced more than three times the fruit quantity—110 tons were picked and packed into both fancy and choice boxes. There is a Rosy Red Valencia PLU sticker. The peak sizes were 113-138-88. This impressive increase in volume demonstrates that the Rosy Red seems to be a very productive tree.
Despite the much earlier harvest in 2024, the internal color of the flesh and juice was a very rosy red, and the rind was notable for the blush. The Rosy Red rind color is distinct from the traditional valencia orange. The external blush becomes even more distinct with a later harvest. We now know the harvest window for the Rosy Red is late-April through late-July.
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Fruit
The internal color of the fruit is a rosy red with the rosy tint occurring throughout the fruit, including the pith. The tiny fruits that develop from the flowers appear to be cream-colored (not dark green like typical Olinda Valencia fruitlets). After a short time, these pale-colored fruitlets change into a green color. The internal blush starts to develop early in the tiny fruits. The outer blush starts to develop in March and becomes more pronounced throughout spring/summer. Some regreening occurs in the later summer. The size and shape of the fruit are similar to a conventional valencia.
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Juice
Rosy Red juice (left) is a lovely blush pink, which is very different from conventional valencia orange juice (right). Testing has established that the color of the flesh and juice is based on lycopene. There is also beta-carotene present in the juice and the flesh. Unlike a blood orange, which has color based on the presence of anthocyanins, there are no anthocyanins in the juice or flesh of the Rosy Red. Sugar and acid tests reveal sugar-to-acid ratio similar to the Olinda Valencia, which results in a very delicious, colorful juice. The juice remains colored even after sitting and makes a fun ingredient for cocktails and recipes.
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Packing
The fruit was packed on May 1 at AC Foods Legacy Packing. The Rosy Red Valencia custom box is flashy and distinct. The fruit was packed into fancy and choice grades. There was a Rosy Red Valencia PLU sticker put on the fancy fruit. The peak sizes were 113s, 138s, 88s, and 72s. AC Foods is educating buyers about the unique characteristics of Rosy Red Valencia. Stay tuned for next year’s harvest when more acreage will come into production.
