At 'India's Lemon City' Puliyangudi, farmers fret over drastic price drop

MADURAI: The price of lemon, which is much sought after by people to beat the summer heat, has dropped in Puliyangudi, which is known as the ‘Lemon City of India’ in the Tenkasi district.

Puliyangudi is home to the largest lemon market in Tamil Nadu.

K Jamshad Siddik, a trader from Puliyangudi, on Monday said, unlike last year when a kilogram of lemons fetched a maximum price of up to Rs240, its price has declined to Rs 140 per kg.

Supply and demand related to price are the key factors in determining the market.

Unusually, the arrival of lemons from Andhra Pradesh shrank considerably last year because of heavy rains that affected cultivation. Subsequently, when demand for lemons increased, it triggered a price surge.

Currently, a kilogram of green lemons is priced at Rs 100 and Rs 140 per kilogram, Siddik said.

However, M Mohammed Nainar, secretary of Puliyangudi Lemon Traders Association, said now the market price has performed much better than last month, when one kg of lemons was priced ranging from Rs 60 to Rs 80 due to a high level of production. Currently, the crop yield has declined and the price has climbed to Rs 150 a kilo of first-quality lemons weighing about 20 lemons and Rs 60 to Rs 70 for medium-quality lemons.

Puliyangudi lemon market largely caters to retail traders in Kerala, constituting 90 percent of the total. During peak season, the Puliyangudi market witnesses arrival of about 250 tonnes a day, but nowadays it has come down to about 100 to 150 tonnes daily, he told DT Next on Monday.

According to V Antony Samy, a lemon farmer from Puliyangudi, the season of cultivation has almost subsided, resulting in the yield decline. Usually, it requires at least four spells of rain during summer, but no rain descended, affecting the cultivation.