Orange production in Brazil Orange production in Brazil Brazil is a major producer of oranges. The orange was introduced to Brazil by the Portuguese around 1530. According to the statistical database of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 702,200 hectares of oranges were harvested in 2013; this is down from 836,041 hectares in 2003. Brazil is also the world's largest exporter of orange juice. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the country shipped 1.2 million metric tons of orange juice in 2012—twelve times more than the United States, the world's second-largest exporter. In 2013, it was reported that many Brazilian orange-growers
Orange juice d-galacturonic acid unit along with blocks of L-rhamnose regions that have side chains of arabinose, galactose, and xylose. Pectin methyl-esterase is the enzyme responsible for hydrolyzing carboxymethyl esters and liberating free carboxyl groups and methyl alcohols. The free carboxyl groups interact with cations to form insoluble pectic acid divalent metal ion complexes. These metal ion complexes precipitate in the juice and carry all the colloids in orange juice with it. The enzyme would flocculate the cloud and clarify the orange juice. Thus, in order to keep the orange juice cloud intact, it is vital to inactivate pectinesterase. Pectinesterase is inactivated