President Donald Trump has indicated that he still plans to impose “reciprocal” tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting on April 2. 

Since starting his second term in the White House, Trump has entered a push-and-pull dynamic with the U.S.'s main trading partners, using the threat of tariffs as a negotiating tool. 

For some industries like fresh imported limes, where Mexico has over 85% of the total share, the effects of the tariff game are already being felt. 

Jose Manuel Villacis, senior vice president for Latin America for Exp. Group LLC, told Freshfruitportal.com that they are looking at other origins to complement the volume from Mexico due to potential higher import prices. 

Villacis said that Mexico has increased its lime export volumes this year compared to last season. 

"The increase in Mexico has hurt the expectations of Colombian lime growers, who were expecting better prices for their production,” he said.

However, the Mexican season has dried up in the past two weeks, later than usual, leaving space for Colombia. Villacis said prices are very high, at around $38 per box of limes. 

Regardless, regarding return on investment, he said it was not a good year for Colombian limes in the U.S. market. 

The latest data from the USDA shows that Mexico imported 121.5 million pounds of limes in January 2025, up from 2024's 104.2 million pounds. Colombian imports increased from 17 million pounds to 19.5 million during the same period. 

Overall, January 2025 volumes increased from 128 million pounds to 146.6 million year over year, demonstrating Mexico's larger volumes.

Challenges for Colombian exporters

Despite the recent growth in Colombian volumes, Villacis said, "I feel that Colombian limes lack a bit of quality, and I have seen some videos that show a manual and rustic packing process, which are not necessarily bad, but they indicate certain informality in the process with a not so rigid selection."

He said the quality from Colombia has been worse this year than in previous years, "with rotten fruit and a quality that we should not be marketing in the USA."

However, he thinks Colombia can deliver higher quality limes that will give them better returns.  

"If we receive low-quality fruit, costs go up because we have to select the fruit at different levels, all charged in USD and at a cost for the producer," Villacis said. 

Not that costs in U.S. supermarkets are high. Colombian exporters want to increase their volumes, but Villacis said that in some way, the harm has already been done because the country did not have a good season so far this year and last year. 

The effects of tariffs on Mexican lime imports

Regarding the possibility of tariffs on Mexican imports, Villacis said there would be "definitely an impact on the industry, and an impact in favor of other lime producers in Latin America."

Importers have been preparing before the April 2 deadline because even if the decision is reversed a couple of days later, fruit is still going into the U.S. every day, and no one wants to pay the extra price. 

"This is happening in every fruit segment, so people are starting to look to other growing countries in Latin America," he said. 

He explained that Exp. Group LLC is already looking for fruit in countries unaffected by tariffs, such as Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and some Central American countries.

Peru growing in the U.S.

Peru has been a key player in the U.S. fruit import market for the last ten years and is increasing its share in the lime market. 

"In this market, I always see Peruvian growers taking the right steps with good products and good practices, and I have seen very promising limes that could grow in this country," Villacis said. 

Overall import lime season in the U.S.

In general, Villacis said the season is shaping up to be quite normal for this time of year, "and we will need to bring limes from Colombia and Peru to complement the Mexico window."

They expect to continue imports from Colombia and Peru throughout April while monitoring the political scene between Mexico and the U.S.

Related article: Colombian limes find opportunity as Mexico winds down