The severe frost in July 2024 has severely affected the lemon harvest in Argentina, limiting the availability of this fruit, especially now in the southern hemisphere's summer months, when demand is at its highest. As a result, despite being a world leader in producing lemon juice, peels, and concentrates (with Tucumán as the main cultivation center), Argentina has had to import lemons from Chile, Egypt, and Mexico.
This situation has also affected multinational companies such as Coca-Cola, which purchases most of its lemon concentrates for global distribution from northwest Argentina. The shortage has caused a notable increase in lemon prices, which rose from $1,500 a kilo in October to $3,000 in November, reaching $5,000 in January 2025.
José Carbonell of the Federation for Citrus expects this situation will continue until March and prices to normalize after. Despite the current challenges, frost can sometimes help regulate markets.
Source: urgente24.com