Coronavirus lockdown: Vijayapura lemon growers rue lack of market access

The lemon growers of the district are a bitter lot. The farmers of the region used to make a fortune from the citrus fruit, every summer. But this year, lack of market access and price crash due to the coronavirus pandemic, lemon has turned sour for the farmers, literally.

Apart from supplying the high quality lemons, unique to the region, to the local markets, the farmers send their produce to Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and a few north Indian states during the season. But this summer, the coronoavirus-induced lockdown has left the farmers of Indi and other lemon-growing taluks in the district high and dry.

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Nagappa Malnadad of Indi-based Shri Shanteshwar Horticulture Producers’ Association, poured out his woes to DH. “Last summer, lemon sold at Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 per 1,000 fruits. But the farmers are finding it tough to sell their produce due to the nationwide lockdown clamped to curb the virus spread. The price has come down drastically to Rs 900 to Rs 1,000 per 1,000 fruits.”

In fact the lemon price has now recovered a bit. In March last week, the citrus fruit was sold at Rs 300 per 1,000 fruits, he added.

Santhosh Biradar, Deputy Director, Horticulture, told DH, “There are over 16,000 lemon farmers in the district. With 12,200 hectares under lemon cultivation, Vijayapura is the largest lemon-growing district in the state, both areawise and production. The district produces 1,25 lakh tonnes of lemons a year and lemon trade in the district is estimated at Rs 500 crore annually.”

The department has provided necessary support to the lemon growers to sell their produce, but they are not finding buyers due to lockdown. This lop-sided supply-demand equation has brought down the price, the officer said.