Introduction Oranges are considered to be world’s most popular fruits because of their presence in most of the country and the extent of their production across the world. The origin of these fruits is Asia. It is believed that these fruits originated from India and China as far back as 2200 BC and hence the name ‘Chinese apples’. They are subsequently thought to have been introduced to America by Christopher Columbus in 1493. Oranges were first cultivated for commercial purposes in the 19 th century but they have been around for a lot longer. They are now produced in many countries including Israel, Brazil, USA, Australia and Japan among other countries. Figure 1: Ripe oranges Description Oranges are the most popular of the citrus fruit family (Manay, 2001, p. 181). They are classified under the family rutaceae and their scientific name is Citrus sinensis. The fruit is a delectable pulpy and falls under same genus as grapefruits, lime, and lemons (Oranges, 2010). The fruit is a tropical and semi-tropical plant which is evergreen and begins to flower when about 5-8 m tall. The plant bear fruits in seasons (Hume, 2009, p. 29). There are three major varieties of oranges: the bitter ones, mandarin, and the sweet ones (Manay, 2001, p. 181). The fruit looks like a modified berry with a tough leathery rind. The skin contains very important volatile oils. The skin is bright yellow when ripe and mature. The orange tree grows up to 15 meters and its branches are like a rounded crown. When young stems of an orange are usually semi-flexible, angled and twisted (Kimball 1999, p. 249). The leaves are ovate, evergreen and sometimes, indistinctly toothed solitary leaflets (Hume, 2009, p. 29). The leaves measure 2 ½ to 6 inches long and 1 to 3¾ inches wide. The plant produces sweetly fragrant white flowers in clusters of twos, threes, et cetera. They are saucer shaped with white petals. The seeds are irregularly shaped in the fruit compartments (Hume, 2009, p. 29). Varieties There are several varieties of oranges; there is the Washington Navel, Valencia variety, the Pineapple, and Hamlin variety which are commonly grown in the US (Ladaniya, 2008, p. 354). The Washington Navel is popular in Brazil, US, Spain, Japan, Paraguay, Spain, and South Africa (Colyer 2000, p. 157). The ease of peeling the fruit has made it popular with salads. The tree requires cool climate and below 3,300 ft above sea level. It was formerly known as Bahia as it is thought to have originated from there. Trovita variety is a non-navel fruit with a number of variants like Texas navel, summer navel, and Thompson navel, among others (Ladaniya, 2008, p. 354). It is common in Brazil and California US (Colyer 2000, p. 157). Valencia or late Valencia is also common in California. The variety is also grown in South Africa and Texas. This type originated from China and was brought to Europe and America by the Portuguese and Spanish voyagers (Ladaniya, 2008, p. 354). Lue Gim Gong is thought to be a hybrid of Valencia and Mediterranean sweet developed by a Chinese farmer. Lue Gim Gong was awarded a medal for this hybrid production. Other varieties produced in the US include Rhode Red Valencia, Homosassa, Shamouti, Parson Brown, Pineapple, Queen, and Blood Oranges (Kalita, 20