Farming representative group Ailimpo's general director, José Antonio García, has announced that Spain is now the world's second-largest producer of lemons, Argentina being the first.
Spain is the lead exporter of fresh lemons and second in processed lemon products.
As reported on Hortoinfo.es; as the production of lemons ‘becomes fashionable’, Spain is optimistic about this season and expects a return to production volumes of around one billion kilos.
Ailimpo, which combines production, commercialisation and marketing of the Spanish lemon industry, will calculate the balance of the 2015/2016 season. The season was categorised as 'atypical', due to low production (around 710,000 tonnes) and high prices.
García said that the decrease in production led to a reduction of exports by 14 per cent. The processing sector has been the most affected, with volumes declining from 305,000 tonnes in 2014/2015, to 100,000 tonnes in 2015/2016.
Since the lemon market "is very sensitive to excess supply", a rapid increase of produce could lead to over-production, García added.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Gabriela Guédez. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
