The United States has the highest demand for citrus in the world and monopolizes the production in Veracruz. Citrus packing companies transport their products to the border in no more than 24 hours, which allows us to easily distribute Persian lime throughout the American Union, stated Rodrigo Calderon Salas, the director of Citricos Cadillo, a packer and exporter of citrus.
In an interview, Calderon Salas said that Martinez de la Torre, the most extensive and important citrus area in Veracruz, exported 75 to 80 percent of its Persian lime production to the United States, with the remainder going to Europe, Japan, and recently to Korea.
He said that if Donald Trump maintained his position against Mexico and, at some point, ordered closing the border definitively, China would be a good alternative for the citrus from Veracruz because it was a large market and they could unburden the overproduction there is in May, June, and July there. "That's why it is important for the Government of the Republic to help us expedite the process to export to that country," he added.
Regarding the free trade issue, the interviewee said that an agreement had allowed Mexico to easily export all of its agricultural products without tariffs. "This is good for Mexican producers, but also good for the United States. It's something that will surely be taken into account by the governments of both countries before thinking about closing borders. We need them and they need us," he said.
Calderon Salas said that Persian lime prices would increase in the United States, if tariffs were imposed on Mexican products, so they would be more expensive for buyers and consumers in that country. "But that would also create a problem here, as demand would decrease and there would be an overproduction. That's why it's important to open the Chinese market," he stated.
Source: E-veracruz.mx