Lemon prices drop to record low, people don't bother to harvest

Mr. Vo Truong Nang’s family in Nam Kim commune, Nam Dan district has more than 100 lemon trees. This has been one of the main crops that has brought income to the family for many years. However, this year, the price of lemons has dropped to a record low, making him restless. Looking at the lemon trees laden with fruit but not knowing who to sell them to, Mr. Nang could not help but feel sad.

It is currently lemon harvest season in Nam Dan and Hung Nguyen districts. Photo: Nguyen Chau

"In previous years, the price of lemons fluctuated from 20,000 - 25,000 VND/kg in the garden, at its peak during hot weather the price of lemons reached 30,000 VND/kg, and as soon as they were picked, people would buy them, but this year the harvest has been a big loss. The price of lemons picked in the garden is only 3,000 VND/kg, the good ones are 5,000 VND/kg, not worth the effort of picking...", Mr. Nang sighed.

Not only Mr. Nang but also hundreds of lemon growing households in the area feel that way.Nam Kim commune, the locality with the largest lemon acreage in Nam Dan district. According to the reporter's records, the lemon gardens in the area are all full of fruit, but not many people harvest them because the price is cheap, some fruits are old and withered on the trees.

This year's lemon crop is good but prices have dropped to a record low. Photo: Nguyen Chau

Mr. Dang Van Dien, a lemon trader in Nam Kim commune, said: "This year, the consumption market is very poor, so we cannot import in large quantities and have to select grade 1 lemons to have an output. Not to mention that during the epidemic, transporting goods is difficult when going from one region to another, so many lemon traders who buy lemons every year have temporarily stopped, so the congestion of lemons is understandable."

Mr. Trinh Xuan Hung - Chairman of Nam Kim Commune People's Committee said: "There are currently 240 hectares of lemon in the area, this is the main crop of the locality in recent years, however this year lemon growers have lost their harvest, although the price has decreased sharply, it is still difficult to sell. We are also connecting with businesses and units to buy lemons for people, but finding a unit during this epidemic season is very difficult".

Due to the difficulty in consumption during the epidemic season, traders only import grade 1 lemons, limiting mass imports like previous years. Photo: Nguyen Chau

Not only in Nam Dan district but also in Hung Nguyen, the price of lemons is at its lowest level in many years. According to statistics, the whole district of Hung Nguyen has 400 hectares of lemons, concentrated in the communes of Hung Yen Nam, Hung Yen Bac, Hung Trung, Hung Tay... in which Hung Yen Nam commune has the largest area with about 200 hectares.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Yen, Agriculture officerHung Yen Nam communesaid: "Faced with the situation of good harvest but low prices, in the past time, the youth union, farmers' association, women's association... have connected with units in the district to join hands to rescue lemons for people. As a result, by September 23, nearly 20 tons of lemons were purchased in time. However, this is only a temporary solution, in the long term, it is necessary to connect units to purchase for people."

Units join hands to rescue lemons for people in Hung Yen Nam commune, Hung Nguyen district. Photo: Nguyen Chau

It is known that the reason why lemon prices in Nghe An "hit rock bottom" is because it is entering the harvest season, supply exceeds demand, besides, the Covid-19 epidemic has severely affected the consumption of lemons when currently many eateries, restaurants, collective kitchens, markets... are still temporarily closed. The lack of traders makes people only know how to sell retail, but the amount sold is not worth much compared to the lemon output in the area.

In Vinh City, according to a survey at markets and agricultural stores on the morning of September 23, the price of lemons is currently only fluctuating from 7,000 - 10,000 VND/kg depending on the type. With the epidemic gradually being controlled, restaurants and eateries in the area are preparing to reopen, so many restaurant owners have taken advantage of buying cheap lemons in large quantities to stock up and serve their business in the coming time./.