More than 600 growers in the Argentine province of Corrientes are in a state of agricultural emergency due to frosts that have damaged orchards this year, website Corrienteshoy.com reported.

The story reported it was estimated the 2013 crop would only be 30% of this year's volume and crops would not recover until 2014.

Argentine president Cristana Fernandez visited the region in October offering subsidies for the sector, but Corrientes Federation of Cooperatives (Fedecoop) president Miguel Rosbaco warned this would not solve all problems.

"There are two problems. The first is that plants were ruined that cannot obtain more citrus fruit," Rosbaco was quoted as saying.

"Secondly, those that managed to survive, as their foliage was affected by the heavy frost, they did not have flowering between August and September. This means that they also won't give fruit.

"Surely less will be exported, and in turn, fruits to be traded on the domestic market will be of lower quality."

www.freshfruitportal.com