The lemon campaign, which started about three weeks ago with some limited volumes, is expected to peak from the second half of this month. Prices have initially been higher than in 2014, ranging between 0.85 and 0.90 € per kilo, although the volume is still limited.
At present, the European market has virtually no stocks from South Africa, Uruguay and Argentina, which have had very positive campaigns in terms of prices and volumes. However, Turkish lemons have already hit the market with a very aggressive pricing, especially in Eastern Europe.
"There is no reason that could justify any speculative price movements with the southern hemisphere season coming to an end and that of the northern hemisphere starting, since we are having a very clean transition, with no overlapping," said José Antonio García, president of AILIMPO. "This is resulting in a very positive start for our campaign, with stability in both supply and demand that has been reflected in very reasonable prices so far."
Moreover, "the lemon harvest this campaign will be about 23% smaller, and this, together with the excellent quality we have this year, is putting us in a position that will allow us to set reasonable and stable price conditions," he added.
Fewer shipments to third countries
Over 90% of the lemons will go to Europe and there will possibly be a reduction in the volume of exports to non-EU countries following the drop in this season's harvest. "The first priority will be to meet the demand of the EU market," said José Antonio García.