Ongoing forest fires in Tolima and Huila — two of Colombia's primary Tahiti lime-producing regions — are causing a product shortage in the domestic market and pushing prices higher, according to Óscar Portilla of De Los Ángeles Produce. The fires are reducing the supply available in the market, creating immediate pressure on availability.
Colombia is a meaningful supplier of limes to the North American market, and domestic shortages driven by production disruptions can translate into reduced export volumes. This comes at a time when the lime market has already been navigating supply transitions and price volatility linked to earlier events in the region.
Watch for any signals that reduced Colombian domestic supply is starting to pull volume away from export channels — that would be the next indicator to track for North American lime buyers. Current lime market conditions make any further supply disruption from a key origin worth monitoring closely.