Spanish lemon prices remain stable, even though sales in European markets are slow, especially after the arrival of large quantities of lemons from third countries in the Mediterranean over the last three weeks.
"The Spanish lemon season started in September with high prices due to the delay of the last batches of South African lemons. However, their arrival in Europe was immediately noticeable in terms of demand and prices," stated Francisco Vicente Gea Belmonte, sales director at Belsán, a company from Murcia that produces and exports lemons.
"Now, the strong arrival of Turkish and Egyptian lemons slowed down the demand for Spanish lemons, which currently have stable prices," stated Gea Belmonte. "Egypt's lemon production is growing and can compete in quality with Spanish lemons, unlike Turkish lemons," he added.
In the 2023/2024 season, Spanish lemon production soared leading to an oversupply in the markets, where the volumes of other producing countries also abounded. This season's harvest is expected to be 20 to 30% lower.
"This doesn't mean we'll have a small harvest this season. It just means it won't be as high as the last one, which was unusual," he stressed. "We expect a good harvest that should peak in December and last until the end of February."
Belsán also produces and exports the Pink Variegated lemon variety, grapefruit, and orange. "We have not started the orange harvest because South Africa still has supply. We also prefer to wait until the fruit has reached a higher sugar content and we can market tastier oranges. In addition, there's a large quantity of small-sized oranges this year," the producer and exporter stated.
For more information:
Francisco Vicente Gea Belmonte
Belmonte Sánchez Belsán S.L.
Vereda Rincón de Gallego 16
M: +34 630 943670
30579 Torreagüera, Murcia
www.belsansl.com
Email: [email protected]