Imported Colombian lime supply is steady at the moment and it's expected that there will be a notable increase in those imports in the coming years. "We're going to see probably a 50 percent increase every year for the next four to five years as the trees mature and produce more fruit," says Brentt Skinner, president and founder of WYCO Produce.
WYCO Produce launched its Colombian year-round lime program last July. "We're doing about four to five containers a week now and we have four different growers that we've aligned ourselves with," says Skinner. As for the fruit sizing, they're 110s-250s with sizing largely in the 150-230 count and lighter on the 110s, depending on the weather.
Improved Colombian production
As for the demand for Colombian limes, it's good. "Customers love the juice in these limes and I think going into Cinco de Mayo, we'll have really good demand," says Skinner. "The Colombian growers have done a fantastic job on the quality and the packing now so we're seeing a shift with customers really liking the Colombian fruit over what they've had in the past."
Also due to transportation costs, there's increasingly stronger interest in Colombian limes from Southeast states such as Florida but also other East Coast markets including New York, Philadelphia, and Boston.
Meanwhile, lime pricing is in the low to mid $30 range currently which is considered a good price. While Colombia is shipping fruit, pricing is largely dictated by the Mexican market which ships the lion's share of limes to the U.S.
For more information:
Brentt Skinner
WYCO Produce Inc
Tel: +1 (813) 751-3480
brentt@wycoproduce.com
www.wycoproduce.com