http://nypost.com/2014/04/21/lime-shortage-drives-new-yorkers-take-extreme-measures/by Tim Donnelly
April 22, 2014
Welcome to the great lime panic of 2014.
A huge shortage is the result of a nasty cocktail of conditions in Mexico, where 97 percent of US limes are grown. Heavy rains knocked the blossoms off many trees, reducing yield. A bacteria that’s long been ravaging citrus trees in Mexico didn’t help either, but the real trouble came when criminals and drug cartels started looting the groves and hijacking delivery trucks.
A case of limes used to cost as little as $30; prices have shot up to as high as $200. And the limes are smaller — golf-ball-sized fruit that doesn’t produce much juice.
(excerpt)