The recovery of orange exports after the war, which arose so much enthusiasm among citrus producers, was not sufficient to absorb all the oranges available from each crop. With an underdeveloped domestic market, the idea of industrializing excess production gained enthusiastic followers.

In 1959, the first concentrated orange juice processing plant, Companhia Mineira de Bebidas, was installed in Brazil. In 1961, Citrosuco Paulista shipped to the United States the first 1,000 tons of concentrated juice.

Brazil's citrus industry large expansion was a result of the frost that fell on Florida's groves in 1962, destroying 13 million trees. It was a milestone for the Brazilian industry. The U.S. did not have raw material to supply their domestic market and the European market.

Brazil ran to fill in the gap, accelerating the orange processing industry development. In the 1960s, it made its first experimental exports of concentrated juice, but the juice industry for export was actually born in 1963.

From 1966 onwards, sales consolidated, and the Brazilian citrus industry entered into full expansion.

Until 1970/71, the industry grew occupying gaps in the international markets, taking advantage of Brazilian laws that encouraged exports.

For the citrus sector, this was a period to learn, grow and structure citrus activities. Over time, the Brazilian industry excelled the technological level of more advanced countries in the sector.

In the 1980s, Brazil became the largest producer of oranges, topping the United States, and since then it has been maintaining the title of largest world producer of oranges and orange juice. As FCOJ confirmed its presence as a heavy weight in Brazilian exports, shipments of fresh oranges dropped. In 1981, Brazil exported over 600,000 tons of FCOJ. For Brazilian citrus producers, delivering the fruit to processors became a safer alternative.

Today, the greater part of the Brazilian citrus production is set aside for the orange juice industry, which is concentrated in the State of São Paulo. The sector is responsible for approximately 400,000 direct jobs, and it is an essential economic activity for 322 municipalities of the State of Sao Paulo and 11 municipalities of the State of Minas Gerais, generating over US$1 billion a year in foreign currency, in the center of the productive chain that generates a GDP equivalent to US$5 billion. Since 1994, Brazil has been exporting from 1.1 to 1.2 million tons of orange juice a year.

Although FCOJ is our main orange product, many commercial by-products are obtained during orange processing, such as essential oils, d'limonene, terpenes, aromatic liquids and citrus pulp pellets (CPP).

The by-products have different applications in the domestic and foreign markets, which include the manufacturing of chemical products and solvents, flagrances and flavors, substances for the paint industry, for cosmetics, and as a complement in animal feed.

Since the United States' first priority is to supply its domestic market, Brazil became the largest FCOJ exporter of the world, responsible for approximately 50% of the demand and 75% of all international transactions. There is no other industrialized product in which Brazil's presence is so remarkable.

This growth is based on a permanently updated technological basis, in planting techniques and sanitary defense, in processing and in transportation logistics. Brazil is the only country of the world to have a fleet of bulk cargo ships operating exclusively with orange juice. Comparatively, each of such ships transports the cargo of 600 trucks - which can be seen on the highways going down to the ports of Santos and Guarujá. It is a huge operation that demands leading edge technology and investments.