Lime producing regions in Mexico.

Mexico is one of the world’s leading lime producers and most of the fruit is grown in the states of Veracruz and Michoacán, since these states have regions with an ideal climate for its production, and Mexican limes are some of the best in the world.

The lime industry plays an important role in the national economy and during the harvest season limes are sent all over Mexico and to markets around the world, mainly the United States. The lime is a versatile fruit that is used in many different culinary dishes.

Key lime producing states in Mexico

The states that lead lime production in Mexico are Veracruz, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Colima and Tamaulipas with 83.2% of the national volume in 2021, or 2,459,443 tonnes.

Veracruz, in the 1st position, produced 804,729 tonnes of lime (27.2%), volume obtained from 51,122 hectares harvested (26.4%), so the average yield in the state was 15.7 tonnes per hectare.

Of the 5 states with the highest production, Tamaulipas obtained the highest average yield, with 20.4 tonnes per hectare, while the highest price per tonne was obtained in Colima with 7,904 pesos.

In terms of the production value, Michoacán led with  6,301 million pesos, accounting for 30.6% of the national total, followed by Veracruz and Colima with 25.2% and 12.0%, respectively.

Key lime producing municipalities in Mexico

The 10 municipalities with the highest lime production in Mexico during 2021 were Escuinapa, Martínez de La Torre, Buenavista, Tecomán, Apatzingán, Atzalan, Santiago Yaveo, Múgica, Tepalcatepec, Huimanguillo and Parácuaro, which accounted for 50.0% of the national volume, or 1,476,083 tonnes.

Martínez de la Torre, in the 1st position, produced 278,133 tonnes (9.4%), although Buenavista was the municipality with the largest harvested area with 17,337 hectares (9.0%), being also Buenavista the municipality that obtained the highest production value, with 2,113 million pesos (10.7%).

Source: SADER-SIAP
More information: Mexican Lime Production and Exports