Lemon dropped to S/8.94 per kilo at the wholesale level

Yesterday, the price of lemon in a bag reached S/8.94 per kilogram in the Great Wholesale Market of Lima (GMML), due to the greater supply of the product that registered a 30% increase in the day’s supply and a stock 80%, a volume that covers the demand of merchants and housewives, while the supply of vegetables and fruits in supply centers also grows, according to the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (Midagri).

In the GMML, the lemon in a bag is sold at S/8.94 kilogram, a figure lower by 5.3% compared to the previous day, while the lemon in a box is offered at S/9.46, lower by 3 ,3%.

Compared to its maximum peak reached in the first week of September —S/12.11—, the wholesale price of subtle lemon was reduced by more than S/3.00 per kilogram.

According to a tour of five retail markets carried out by a team from La República, lemon costs between S/14.00 and S/17.00. Some merchants stated that in previous days it was at S/18.00, which shows a reduction of up to S/4.00, although it is still high.

As recalled, the rise in prices of lemon and other products such as onions is mainly due to climatic anomalies that have affected crops in recent months.

In the latest report on inflation, the Central Reserve Bank (BCRP) had indicated that citrus would reach its highest price in September and will begin its decline in October. In November it would fall to S/9.40 and reach S/6.58 in December, taking as a reference what happened in 2017 when there was also an impact from El Niño Costero.

Chicken price remains stable

According to Midagri, the price of chicken remains stable, being sold at S/5.47 in the main live poultry distribution centers in the capital, while the price of eggs is between S/8.40 and S/9. 10 per kilogram.

At the retail level, chicken cost between S/8.50 and S/9.00, when previous days it was offered at S/7.50. In the case of a kilo of egg, its price ranges between S/9.50 and S/10.00.

Other vegetables that are also consumed daily by Peruvian families are tomatoes and peas and cost around S/5.00 per kilo.

In the wholesale supply there was yellow sweet potato at S/0.64 per kilogram; yungay potato at S/0.83; purple sweet potato at S/1.03; papa canchan at S/1.10; yellow yucca at S/1.15; carrot at S/1.33; green mountain bean at S/1.45, according to the Midagri report.

The key

Consumption. In 2010, the demand for lemon in Lima was 90,000 tons per year, but in 2020 it had strong growth and reached 180,000 tons, according to specialist Eduardo Zegarra. This growth is explained because its consumption expanded to cebicherias and restaurants.