The Sicilian lemon season is ongoing and FreshPlaza talked to Salvatore Magliocco, vice-president of a large cooperative in Syracuse, about the productive and commercial trends.
"The citrus fruit situation in Sicily is rather diverse: despite the fact that orange quality is excellent, fruits are not doing well on the market while demand for lemons is booming. This in turn leads to many orange groves being abandoned in the Syracuse or Catania area, as sales prices do not even cover harvesting costs."
According to the manager, this is due "to the produce coming from overseas or South Africa, as supply increases lead to lower prices."
Salvatore Magliocco
"This is very sad for our producers, as their efforts and the considerable costs are not repaid. Most of all, however, we are seeing that institutions allow incoming produce from abroad, penalising our agricultural sector instead of safeguarding our produce."
"Demand for Sicilian lemons - from Syracuse in particular - is increasing on a national level. ISMEA data reveal that, compared to 2017, orange prices have dropped by 27.5% while lemon prices increased by 18.9%."
"Of course lemons are not all the same. 'Limone di Siracusa IGP' is one of the most interesting and was rewarded with the PGI mark on 3rd February 2011."
The mark is a guarantee that the fruits come exclusively from the Syracuse area and are grown in orchards certified by Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia.