California Citrus Quality Council

What California Citrus Quality Council does

California Citrus Quality Council (CCQC) is a California nonprofit corporation founded in 1967 (originally as the Industry Committee on Citrus Additives and Pesticides, ICCAP, renamed in 1977) that provides regulatory compliance, quality assurance, and phytosanitary support to the California citrus industry. Its core service portfolio includes export program management for eight major markets (Australia, Korea, China, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand, and Vietnam), crop health and invasive pest management resources (covering HLB/ACP, citrus black spot, sweet orange scab, and others), MRL (Maximum Residue Level) databases, GAP food safety guidance, and regulatory advisories on pesticide policy at the EPA, CDPR, and USDA-APHIS levels. CCQC also conducts the industry's authorized quality assurance program under an operating agreement with the California Citrus Research Board, supported by board appointments from CRB and California Citrus Mutual.

The organization's technology footprint is a content-and-database platform: a website (ccqc.org) distributing export protocols, advisory bulletins, MRL databases (including referenced third-party FoodChain ID data), downloadable GAP documents in English and Spanish, and regulatory updates to industry stakeholders. No commercial products are sold and no SaaS or API layer exists. Distribution is direct to California growers, packing houses, and exporters via web, email advisories, an annual January conference, and press releases.

CCQC is funded entirely by California citrus growers through a mandatory grower assessment, has no parent company, no subsidiaries, and no commercial revenue. Governance is provided by a 10-member board (8 elected plus 2 appointed seats from CRB and Citrus Mutual). The current President, James R. Cranney, Jr., has held the role since July 2008, leading a small staff that also includes an Executive Assistant. Partnerships span California state agencies (CDFA), federal agencies (USDA-APHIS, EPA), the University of California system (UC Davis, UC Riverside), and international standards bodies (Codex Alimentarius), positioning CCQC as the de facto regulatory interface between the California citrus industry and global market access regimes.

Name

California Citrus Quality Council

Legal name

California Citrus Quality Council

Website

https://ccqc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

California Citrus Quality Council is a nonprofit corporation that provides regulatory compliance, quality assurance, and export program management services to California citrus growers, packers, and exporters across eight major international markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Citrus Industry Quality Assurance & Regulatory Compliance Services

NAICS

Citrus (except Orange) Groves (11132), Orange Groves (111310)

akta.pro primary industry

Supplier Quality Assurance & Vendor Approval Programs (AFALALAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Citrus Orchards (Oranges, Lemons, Limes, Grapefruit) (AFAGACAA), Labeling & Claims Compliance Review (Nutrition, Allergen, Country-of-Origin) (AFALADAF)

Keywords

• Citrus export compliance
• Phytosanitary regulatory services
• Maximum residue level databases
• Citrus food safety GAP
• Agricultural quality assurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Auburn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

California Citrus Quality Council is a nonprofit industry association that provides regulatory compliance, phytosanitary, food safety, and quality assurance program services to the California citrus industry. Its core offerings include country-specific citrus export programs (Australia, Korea, China, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand, Vietnam), crop health and pest management resources, regulatory advisories, Maximum Residue Level (MRL) databases, and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) food safety guidance. All services are funded through a grower assessment and are not sold commercially.

Product overview

California Citrus Quality Council (CCQC) is a nonprofit organization that operates as a service and resource provider for the California citrus industry rather than a product company. CCQC offers a portfolio of programs and services including: Export Programs (facilitating citrus exports to Australia, Korea, China, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand, and Vietnam); Crop Health Services (addressing HLB/ACP, citrus black spot, sweet orange scab, invasive pests); Advisories (international updates on residue testing and regulatory compliance); Food Safety Resources (workshops and GAP guidance documents); Chemical & Regulatory Services (pesticide policy information); and MRL Databases (pesticide residue requirements for export markets). These services work together to help California citrus producers meet domestic and international phytosanitary, food safety, food additive, and pesticide residue regulations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Export Programs Program services facilitating California citrus exports to major international markets including Australia, Korea, China, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand, and Vietnam. Services include workplans, registered shippers' lists, presentations, country tariffs, and compliance requirements.
• Crop Health Services Resources and programs addressing crop health issues including pest management strategic plans, sweet orange scab, citrus black spot, light brown apple moth, HLB/ACP (Huanglongbing/Asian Citrus Psyllid), and invasive pests.
• Advisories Service International advisories providing updates on residue testing, copper applications, phytosanitary requirements, and recommendations from industry experts. Covers Korea, China, Australia, Vietnam, and other key export markets.
• Food Safety Resources Guidance materials including food safety workshops, downloadable presentations, handbooks, and best practices for delivering safer produce. Covers GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) for growers and harvesters.
• Chemical & Regulatory Services Information on crop protection tools and pesticide policy issues impacting the California citrus industry. Includes updates on DPR restricted use pesticide notification systems and EPA regulations.
• MRL Databases Maximum Residue Level databases providing pesticide residue requirements for major export markets. Includes the FoodChain ID Global MRL Database and CCQC's own Citrus MRLs in Major Export Markets database.
• Chile Citrus Program Export program providing Chile citrus shippers list, Chile Citrus Protocol documentation, program review materials, and harmful organisms list for citrus exports to Chile.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• California Citrus Research Board (CRB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCQC conducts the citrus industry's quality assurance program authorized under an operating agreement with the California Citrus Research Board. The CRB also appoints one member to CCQC's Board of Directors.
• California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorks with CDFA on phytosanitary issues, pest prevention programs, and regulatory compliance. CDFA releases official crop measurement reports referenced by CCQC.
• University of CaliforniacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UC Davis and UC Riverside for food safety research, pest management, and technical guidance to citrus growers. UC experts contribute to CCQC workshops and publications.
• Codex AlimentariusmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorks with international food standards organization Codex Alimentarius and its committees to gain systematic approval of internationally standardized residue tolerances for citrus.
• USDA (United States Department of Agriculture)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with USDA-APHIS on phytosanitary regulations, quarantine compliance, and export protocols. USDA provides regulatory oversight and market access support.
• California Citrus MutualcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCalifornia Citrus Mutual appoints one member to CCQC's Board of Directors. Both organizations work together on industry advocacy and regulatory matters.
• United Fresh Produce AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on food safety initiatives including guidance documents for environmental monitoring and Listeria control. CCQC has partnered with United Fresh on food safety workshops.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• FoodChain ID: A commercial provider of the Global MRL Database that CCQC explicitly references as a resource for its members. FoodChain ID competes in the same regulatory information space but as a paid commercial service rather than nonprofit industry support, and serves all crops rather than specializing in citrus.

Direct peers

• Florida Citrus Mutual: The Florida equivalent of California Citrus Mutual, representing Florida citrus growers on policy and advocacy. While geographically separate, it serves the same function (grower-funded industry association) for a citrus industry facing the same HLB crisis—making it a structurally identical peer facing similar challenges.
• California Citrus Research Board: A California industry-funded research organization that operates under a state marketing order and holds the operating agreement that authorizes CCQC's quality assurance program. The two organizations are structurally intertwined: CRB appoints one seat to CCQC's board, and CRB funds the research CCQC translates into grower protocols.
• California Strawberry Commission: A California state marketing order commission supporting strawberry growers with research, marketing, and food safety/regulatory programs. Same grower-assessment funding model, same California specialty crop focus, similar regulatory compliance scope as CCQC.
• California Avocado Commission: A California state marketing order organization funded by grower assessments that conducts research, marketing, and regulatory compliance support for California avocados. Same organizational structure (state marketing order, grower assessment funding, commodity-specific services) as CCQC but for avocados.
• California Citrus Mutual: A nonprofit trade association representing California citrus growers on advocacy and policy issues. CCQC and CCM jointly submit regulatory comments (e.g., EPA chlorpyrifos, carbaryl), share a board appointment arrangement, and operate as sister organizations covering compliance (CCQC) versus advocacy (CCM) for the same grower base.

Others

• Sunkist Growers: A California citrus grower cooperative that is one of CCQC's primary constituents and the largest California citrus marketer. Sunkist itself is a commercial grower entity rather than a service organization, but it is materially interconnected with CCQC as both a funder (via grower assessments on behalf of members) and a primary user of CCQC's export protocols and MRL services.

Broad incumbents

• Produce Marketing Association: A global trade association serving the fresh produce and floral supply chain. PMA provides industry-wide standards, events, and advocacy that overlap with CCQC's broader compliance/quality mission but at a multi-commodity level rather than citrus-specific.
• United Fresh Produce Association: The broader U.S. fresh produce industry trade association. CCQC partners with United Fresh on food safety workshops and Listeria guidance documents. United Fresh covers the entire produce industry rather than specializing in citrus, making it a broader peer that overlaps on food safety but not phytosanitary export protocols.

Regional players

• Texas Citrus Producers Board: A Texas industry board supporting Texas citrus growers with research and marketing programs. Smaller scale than CCQC, operating in the Rio Grande Valley rather than California, but serving a similar grower-assessment-funded function for citrus producers facing similar pest and regulatory pressures.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about California Citrus Quality Council