James Boyd prepares finger
limes at Fruit Logistica

http://www.freshinfo.com/index.php?s=n&ss=nd&sid=47761&s_txt=&s_date=0&ms=&offset=0

Finger limes grasp European market

Australian finger lime production is set to nearly triple this year when Finger Limeing Good will plant 35,000 more trees in New South Wales.

The unusual variety – a long, thin version with a caviar-like pulp – dates back more than 200 years and has been a hit with high-end customers in across the world.

James Boyd, who heads up Finger Limeing Good, has teamed up with Belgium-based Special Fruit to target the European market.

Sendings started up with 100kg a week, from January to May.

Production in New South Wales will be stepped up this year, expected to reach 50,000 trees, up from 15,000 for now. The new trees will be harvested after two years.

Boyd started producing finger limes in Australia eight years ago, after coming across them growing in the wild and realising their commercial potential.

He said: “We are trying to steer away from supermarkets and keep finger limes in the high-end market.”

Lieve Michielsen from Special Fruit told FPJ: “We searched our customer base for those who have high-end customers and from there, the interest came quickly. We ship them our other products, to 28 countries including the Netherlands, Russia and the UK.

“This first year has been about checking out the possibilities, but we are aiming to supply high-level customers.”

I picked a finger lime from my tree and gave one to my wife to taste. Was not nice. - Millet (1,433-)

In reading around it seems that good flavor in Australian micro-citrus is highly strain dependent.

Almost bought one on my last trip to the Just Fruits folks. Their big tree had fruit on it. I should have asked to taste one.

.....Alan.

Alan, I do not think that Finger Limes are all that bad tasting.. It is a fruit that I would not want to eat directly, but rather use as a relish on perhaps a fish dish. Of all the different types of citrus varieties that I grow, my wife thinks only about 5% are worth eating. She says she likes "real oranges, and real mandarins, and not all that other stuff".. - Millet (1,432-)