The Citrus Survey "Spring 2024", conducted in December 2024 by the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, provides valuable data on citrus production in the country. Through interviews with producers, representative information was obtained on the four most relevant species: orange, mandarin, lemon and grapefruit.
Citrus production and harvesting
The total production of citrus fruits for the harvest 2024 was estimated at 305 thousand tons, of which 92% had already been harvested at the time of the survey. The species that still had a remainder to be harvested were oranges and lemons.

Table 1. Citrus: total production, harvested and to be harvested.
Species | Total production (t) | Harvested production (t) | Production to be harvested (t) |
---|---|---|---|
Total | 304,839 | 281,568 | 23,271 |
Orange | 117,429 | 95,970 | 21,459 |
Mandarin | 100,356 | 100,090 | 266 |
Lemon | 86,596 | 85,050 | 1,546 |
Grapefruit | 458 | 458 | 0 |
Crop area and yields
The total area dedicated to citrus crops is 13,477 hectares, with mandarins occupying the largest area with 5,558 hectares, representing 41% of the total. In terms of production, orange leads with 117 thousand tons, followed by mandarin and lemon.
Table 2. Citrus: Area, production and yield by species.
Species | Surface area (ha) | Production (t) | Yield (t/ha) |
---|---|---|---|
Total | 13,477 | 304,839 | |
Orange | 5,226 | 117,429 | 22.5 |
Mandarin | 5,558 | 100,356 | 22.1 |
Lemon | 2,637 | 86,596 | 32.8 |
Grapefruit | 56 | 458 | 8.2 |
Production destinations
Of the total production, 28.6% was destined for export. Mandarin was the most exported species, with 41.5 thousand tons, representing 41% of its production. Oranges also played an important role, with 36 thousand tons exported, equivalent to 31% of total production.
Table 3. Citrus: Production by destination, according to species
Species | Total (t) | Exports (t) | Domestic market (t) | Industry (t) | Others (t) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 304,839 | 87,045 | 106,290 | 108,481 | 3,021 |
Orange | 117,429 | 36,138 | 59,481 | 19,965 | 1,844 |
Mandarin | 100,356 | 41,470 | 34,343 | 23,391 | 1,152 |
Lemon | 86,596 | 9,245 | 12,223 | 65,103 | 25 |
Grapefruit | 458 | 192 | 243 | 22 | 0 |
Lemon, although it had the lowest export share (11%), was key in the industrial sector, with 65 thousand tons destined for this purpose, representing 75% of its total production.
Source consulted: MGAP –DIEA.