CA Citrus Industry Angry Over Lemons From Argentina

The California citrus industry was livid over the decision by the Trump Administration to lift the ban that had been in place on Argentina lemons. The administration decided to allow lemon imports from northwest Argentina to resume for the first time in 16 years. The ban will be lifted on May 26, a move that California Citrus Mutual, an industry advocacy group, says left them blindsided. “They just flat-out ignored us,” says Joel Nelsen, CCM President, “and that’s unacceptable.” The ban was first put in place because California citrus growers said Argentine lemons contained diseases. Last December, the Obama administration said it would lift the ban. The Trump administration later issued a 60-day stay on the decision. “We disagreed with the Obama administration,” Nelsen said, “and this now belongs to the Trump administration. It flies in the face of the administration’s priorities, which are to protect domestic agriculture, U.S. businesses, and U.S. jobs.” He said there are also serious questions about pests that could still come in with Argentine imports and do damage to U.S. groves. Argentina farmers say they’ve complied with all U.S. regulations and say there are no problems with the sanitary condition of their fruit.