Robust demand from the fresh market has led to a positive start to the 2017/18 Spanish lemon campaign. The latest figures from Ailimpo show a 13 per cent increase in shipments between September and December 2017 compared to the year-earlier period.
The association published an updated forecast for the season, pegging the total crop at 1m tonnes. This comprises 862,000 tonnes of Fino and 206,000 tonnes of Verna.
“Rains, water availability as well as general weather conditions are some of the key facts conditioning the size of the fruit with predominance of average and central sizes fruit,” Ailimpo said.
“The Spanish sector will continue consolidating its leadership position in the European fresh market in terms of quantity, quality, food safety and excellent service while keeping its 2nd place in the processing activity worldwide.”
The Fino season is expected to conclude at the end of April, with Verna lemons available for another 7-8 weeks before the start of the Southern Hemisphere campaign.
