Temperatures are starting to drop in the Rocca Imperiale valleys. This has accelerated the veraison of the famous PGI lemons, thus enabling a quicker and more homogeneous coloring of the fruits.
"We think we will be able to start harvesting around December 10th, one week earlier than in the previous campaigns. The weather of the past 7 days has hastened veraison. Although we still reach 20°C during the day, the temperature drops to 6-7°C during during the night," explains Pietro Buongiorno, president of Cooperativa di Produttori di Limoni associati di Rocca Imperiale, which is present on the Italian and European markets with the Limoré brand.
The imminent start of the 2022/23 season is also visible in the enthusiasm of commercial operators. "Clients are starting to come forward much earlier than last year, probably also due to the reduced availability of lemons from countries such as Argentina and Morocco. They ask us about our potential supply and packaging solutions. On the one hand, we have our usual clients we have been working with for years and , on the other, we have new buyers who have heard about our high-quality produce and professionalism and want to start working with us. We are establishing the first agreements with the markets of Milan, Turin, Florence and Bologna as well as with buyers from Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and France."
The start of the seasons will coincide with the Christmas period. "It is usually the Christmas holidays that set things off but, this year, we might register a further increase in demand as we will start early. Starting prices should hover between €1.50-1.80/kg. The only negative thing is the 20% drop in yields caused by the earlier weather conditions."
