Journey from lemon orchard to ‘thela’ to understand why citrus fruits are so expensive right now. Explained

Please tell that this lemon orchard is mine. But I am not the only farmer in the city. This fruit is grown in orchards spread over a total of 3.17 lakh hectares across the country.

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Andhra Pradesh is the largest producer of lemon with 45,000 hectares. The other major lemon producing states are Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha and Tamil Nadu.

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Now, it is important to understand that lemon trees bloom and bear fruit three times a year. And it is within this cycle that farmers like me faced problems in production this year.

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How? Lemon growers take three springs per year:

Ambe: Flowering starts in January-February, in which fruits start forming in April.

Deer: The orchards bloom during the deer spring in June-July, and the harvest occurs in October.

Hasta: Flowering season in Hasta Bahar lasts from September to October, harvested after March.

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Because these springs overlap, farmers have fruit to sell throughout the year. One Indian Express The report states that Ambe Bahar contributes about 60% to the crop that feeds the market, while Mrig Bahar contributes 30% and Hasta Bahar is the rest.

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But this time the failure of Hasta Bahar and then Ambe Bahar brought bad news for the farmers. Last year’s monsoon was exceptionally good across the country, but the months of September and October saw exceptionally heavy rains. Lemon orchards are extremely sensitive to excessive moisture, so heavy rains have resulted in failure of spring treatment, and no flowering. This fruit is generally kept in cold storage and is marketed till the next harvest season. The report said that this time due to very less crop, farmers had less produce to store.

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The unseasonal rains also damaged the fruit of Ambe Bahar, with farmers reporting a decline in flowering in the initial stages. Rising temperatures since late February have also affected the crop, causing small fruit drop. In summer when the demand for lemon is at its peak, the stored Hasta Bahar and fresh Ambe Bahar fruits supply the market. But the double whammy has hit the market output.

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Whatever lemons I could cultivate are packaged, but now for transport…

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The owner of this fictional lemon orchard will now launch his own lemon market. But this year transportation is expensive.

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Gasoline, diesel and compressed natural gas prices have risen, resulting in higher transportation costs, driving higher rates for vegetables and fruits. Since March 22, fuel prices in India have increased 14-fold, raising transportation costs.

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Vegetable vendors claim that due to increase in transportation cost and subsequent increase in purchase price, they will be forced to sell vegetables at a higher price.

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and finally, to the market

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So now, high prices are coming down on your pocket. But there’s another reason: high demand and no comparable supply. Many regions in India are witnessing heatwave-like conditions, increasing the demand for citrus fruits.

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It coincides with the beginning of the festive season, from where lemons are also used for various purposes.

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So now what?

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The report said that the chances of an immediate correction in prices are slim, with traders rejecting any immediate correction in arrivals. The next crop, which is expected to hit the market after October, will be ready only after that, and only after that the arrivals will improve significantly.

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As per the Indian Express report, some Ambe Bahar arrivals are expected from areas where flowering has not been severely disrupted. Still, it is not expected that this arrival will be enough to meet demand, it says.

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