It's been an early end for the Turkish Mayer lemon season, but fortunately, the season now continues with another variety, says Mustafa Arslan, owner of Turkish fresh produce exporter MDA Agricultural Products: "Our lemon season continues with our Lamas variety. Unfortunately, due to climate change this season, we had to end the season early for our early variety, the Mayer lemons. I think that the Lamas lemons will have a good season, with high quality and efficient production."
Overall it's been a tough time for the Turkish lemons in the past few years, but better times are now on the horizon according to Arslan. "I think the worst is behind us for Turkish lemons in general. Our Lamas lemon is the most preferred variety and has a longer and more productive season than competing varieties. It's difficult to say that we are experiencing any market loss in lemon. In fact, demand is actually increasing in Europe. However, unfortunately, even though we have left the pesticide problem behind, climate-related thrips cause skin errors at the moment."
This year, volumes for Lamas lemons appear to be quite a bit lower, but Arslan is still convinced it will be a positive season from here on out: "Although the production of the Lamas variety is 20 percent lower than last season, it won't cause any supply problems. As such, we will be able to meet the ever-increasing demands this season, especially in Europe, and we will have a productive season between February and May."
Although demand for the lemons is high, Arslan emphasizes there are other causes for the increased prices. "Unfortunately, our higher pricing is not based on current demand, but due to reasons arising from internal competition in our country and high costs. Even exporters who export below cost have not been able to satisfy their buyers. Quality products are never cheap. If we can overcome the internal competition arising from the sectoral contraction, Turkish citrus will have a better quality, at the levels it should be, and a system in which the buyer companies are happy. We will continue to export lemons at current prices in the coming weeks, but we predict that prices will increase after March."
And now, 2025 is here for MDA: "We have no other goal than to be productive and successful in general by completing our programs for the rest of the season. For this purpose, we will always strive to achieve better quality and better work rather than earning more money," Arslan concludes.
For more information:
Mustafa Arslan
MDA Agricultural Products
Mobile: +90 541 348 39 09
Email: [email protected]
www.mda-agro.com