The Verna lemon campaign has kicked off with greater stability and "livelier sales," says Bartolomé Rodríguez, from the Murcian company Sixto Lemon, which has already put an end to the Fino lemon campaign. "Right now, our campaign is in full swing and things are going quite well; however, prices are not as competitive as we would like, given the expenses generated by the Verna, since this is a lemon that remains for a long time on the tree and this entails higher costs."
"When the supply runs out in the large markets in Europe that also consume lemons from Turkey or Egypt, the market clearly becomes more lively and prices do not drop as much, and it seems that we should now be in such situation."
"We hope there will still be stability when the Eureka and Verdelli lemons start to arrive. The Verdelli in particular is harvested during the summer months, from July to September, and is a lemon from the tree's second bloom, which is harvested green," explains Bartolomé. "This year, we've had a great first bloom, so a smaller Verdelli harvest is expected, although it remains a very interesting type of summer lemon."
Bartolomé and his cousin José Joaquín are the third generation of this family business devoted to lemons, founded by their grandfather more than 40 years ago. "My father and my uncle, who are now retired, are still helping us by providing us with their wisdom in lemon cultivation, and they passed down the values we have always upheld of respect for the growers and our products," says Bartolomé. "We are a small company. We have been growing slowly over the past 3 years and are now handling about 4 million kilos annually. We remain focused on marketing a quality product and working with loyal customers who can get a year round supply from us, and who desire to work with our brand, which is highly appreciated by its buyers."
"That's why, not only with the Fino, but also with the Verna or Eureka, we have quite linear campaigns and we are not suffering as much as other producers, who in years of plenty made investments and changed their working methods. Today, many of those have been forced to uproot their farms."
For more information:
Hijos de Joaquín Rodríguez S.L.
C/ Rambla del Carmen, n.º 24
30110 Cabezo de Torres, Murcia. Spain
Tel.: +34 968 83 27 32
[email protected]