Argentina: USDA projects that citrus shipments will decrease in the 2023-2024 campaign

According to a new report from the US Department of Agriculture, USDA, in the Argentine campaign, both lemons, oranges and mandarins will register a drop in their shipments. For the 2023-2024 campaign, USDA projected that fresh lemon production will fall by 11%, to 1,700,000 tons, compared to the 1,907,000 tons estimated by the entity. This negative trajectory can be attributed to the worst climatic conditions, with higher temperatures than expected and during the harvest season there were irregular and severe rains, which have not only had an impact on the size of the lemons, but have also damaged numerous lemon trees. . In addition, the average size of the fruits was lower than originally estimated, reducing total production; however, producers expect a high level of fruit quality. During the current campaign, the lemon harvest began approximately 30 days later than the usual start week. A delay also attributed to weather changes. Despite this delay, the change turned out to ...