(Figure 1), the total volume of Florida citrus packed for fresh shipment
has increased every year since the 1968-69 season (Figure 2) except
1976-77, a freeze year. However, orange and tangerine shipments have
remained quite stable while grapefruit shipments have been increasing.
For some growers, the fresh market is their primary market and packing
cost is the second key cost element in the marketing channel that affects
on-tree grower returns.


 PACKING COSTS


 The 4/5-bushel fiberboard carton is the predominant container used.
For the 1976-77 season, nearly 63 percent of commercial orange and tan-
gerine shipments and 80 percent of commercial grapefruit shipments were
in the 4/5 carton. Total packing and selling costs for grapefruit and
oranges have risen steadily since 1959-60 (Tables 9, 10). All expense
categories have not risen by the same proportions. Direct operating
expenses have increased more relative to the base period than any other
category.
 Labor costs have not increased as much as most other items. This
may be attributed in part to increasing mechanization in the handling
and packing operations. The shift to pallet box instead of field box
receiving and dumping and increased use of mechanical packer aids are
two changes that have helped temper the increase in labor costs.
 Other factors that influence packing costs include packout percent-
age (Figure 3) and packinghouse size. Kilmer and Tilley [12] estimate
that a 10 percent increase in packout will decrease packing costs about
3 cents per box. High (low) packout means that less (more) fruit must be
handled in order to pack a given volume.
 If low packout adversely affects the volume of fruit a packinghouse
packs in a given year, low packout may have a secondary impact on costs
because of the decrease in volume. While the total volume of fruit
handled has been increasing, the number of firms commercially packing
fruit has decreased and the average volume per house has increased
(Figure 4).