Lemons and grapefruit have been excluded from the list of Turkish agricultural products that are banned from entering Russia. Due to the lack of a domestic production and the absence of the vetoed Spanish lemons, Turkey remains Russia's only lemon supplier, despite Russia being able to import oranges or mandarins from other sources. Turkey will consequently continue exporting, which means there will be no alterations in the European lemon market, despite previous speculation.
"The fact that Turkey can continue exporting lemons to Russia is good news for Spanish producers and exporters, as it entails a lower saturation of supply in Europe," stated José Antonio García, director of AILIMPO. "This will make it possible to maintain the status quo in the European market," he adds.
While lemon sales usually fall in November, José Antonio García recalled that during the weeks prior to the announcement of the Russian veto on Turkish products there was speculation in the market and a downward pressure on prices due to fears of it affecting all fruits and vegetables.
There is no reason to justify the recent pressure on prices by large distributors. Spain is practically the only producer in Western Europe at the moment and this year there is approximately a 25% drop in the production due to the weather conditions. This is causing prices at origin to remain at higher levels than last year and this should also be reflected in higher retail prices. According to our weekly monitoring, we note that consumer prices have mostly remained stable in all supermarket chains since the start of the campaign, so we do not understand this pressure on exporters."
Prices are now stabilising, even though the high levels registered in September and October have not been recovered, given the early end of the season in the southern hemisphere. In terms of quality, the campaign has been good so far and there has been a predominance of small and medium sizes.