From consumers to soda vendors, all feel financial squeeze of skyrocketing lime rates

Shahin Bepari Lambe

Panaji

With the ongoing heatwave devastates crops, lime, a kitchen staple, has turned into a luxury item in Goa. Vendors and consumers alike are struggling to cope, with limes now selling for
Rs 10 to Rs 12 each—more than double the usual
price.

“The heat has spoiled the crops. We’re not getting good quality limes, and the quantity has dropped sharply,” said a local vendor. A bag of 1,500 to 2,000 limes, which previously cost Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000, now fetches between Rs 9,000 and Rs 10,000, he said. “Many limes in that bag aren’t even ripe.”

Another vendor said, “We’re losing Rs 1 or
Rs 2 on each lime, but we keep selling. It’s about keeping our regular customers. We can’t just
stop.”

The crisis has also hit small-scale lime soda vendors. “The price of one glass limbu soda is still Rs 25 to Rs 30. We can’t increase the rate even if lime prices have gone up—it affects our customers,” said a vendor. “Right now we are not at all running in profit as lime itself comes for Rs 10 to Rs 12 each, then there’s salt, sugar, soda bottle, paper cup, straw. We hardly manage to get any profit
margin.”

In local markets, limes are now being sold by size, with larger ones priced around Rs 1,200 per kg and smaller ones at about Rs 1,000 per kg. With just 14 to 18 limes in a kilogram, consumers are feeling the financial squeeze with every
purchase.