Thanks new investments, Ledesma expands its fruit, juices and essential oils business

(Photo: export oranges from the Calilegua orchard)

Buenos Aires, January 18th. Ledesma, one of the Argentine largest farming and ag-industry companies, announced that thanks the new investments in the Fruit and Juice Business Unit, they expanded 60% its citric essential oil production last year.

Based in the Jujuy province, in the North of Argentina, Ledesma planted another 200 hectares of citrics reaching a total of 3,000 hectares and constructed a new essential oils factory, investing eight million dollars.

According to the company press release, in 2018 Ledesma produced 224 tons of orange essential oil, 164 tons of lemon and 65 tons of grapefruit. The 90% of this production was exported to the European Union and the US markets. This production represents a 60% growth respect 2017.

Founded in 1908, Ledesma is one of the largest ag-industry companies in the country, employing 8,000 people and leading the sugar cane and paper (obtained from bagasse) businesses. Also, the company is the Argentine’s largest producer and exporter of oranges and grapefruit. During last year, the company produced:
1.-69.682 tons of oranges.
2.- 21.801 tons of lemons.
3.- 17.064 tons of grapefruits.

The company informed that in the last year they processed near to 90.000 tons of citrics to obtain 5.700 tons of juice, a half of them from orange, and the other two quarters from lemon and grapefruit.

Also, the company packed 35.000 tons of fruit, to supply both domestic market as foreign customers, most of them in the European Union.

Spokespersons from Ledesma expressed its satisfaction with the growth of the Fruit, Juice and Essential oils operation, stressing that due to better macroeconomic conditions (basically the exchange rate) a larger volume of orange and grapefruit juices was derived to exportation.