The heavy rainfall and subsequent flooding continue to occupy minds in Flanders. In potatoes, many plots have already been lost and others delayed due to impassable fields. For Dutch carrot and leek growers, the wet weather conditions are also causing major consequences. "It's a disaster," says grower Tom Desmet of Desmet Agro.
Crop losses tied to extreme weather triggered over $3 billion in crop insurance payouts to California farmers in the last 20 years.The data was based on a recent study published by the nonprofit Environmental Working Group and analyzed payments made to farmers from the Federal Crop Insurance Program between 2001 and 2022.
Heavy rainfall has been recorded in Belgium since last week. West Flanders in particular has been severely hit by the weather. Some people have already been evacuated due to the floods. The rain is also taking a toll on vegetable cultivation.
"The equivalent of 6 months of rain fell in just 30 days," according to producers of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The northern region of France has been coping with record-high water levels and historic flooding for several days.
Sand and dust storms are an underappreciated problem now “dramatically” more frequent in some places worldwide, with at least 25% of the phenomenon attributed to human activities, according to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
Iván Marambio, the president of Frutas de Chile (former Asoex), said that the fruit sector is evaluating the situation in the fields after the spring rains that are affecting various areas of the country.
Thomas le Bot of EARL Le Bot gives an update on the damage to farms in Plougastel after storm Ciaran hit Brittany on the night of November 2nd to 3rd. Last Wednesday, Plougastel producers met with their municipality to begin the process of taking stock of the damage and compiling compensation claims.
Farmers in south-east Queensland's Lockyer Valley are facing devastating losses after a hailstorm caused an estimated $30 million in crop damage and an additional $20 million in infrastructure damage.
Ventura County, located in the southern part of California, is arguably the most beautiful place on earth to grow lemons. While the county is known for gorgeous beaches and beautiful mountain ranges, it is also a key agricultural area with the production value of lemons amounting to $253.7 million in 2021.
Southern bacterial wilt of tomato is caused by the soilborne bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum (formerly known as Pseudomonas solanacearum). It is a widespread and potentially devastating disease that affects solanaceous crops and a wide range of ornamentals in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Belgian leeks were very expensive last week. That is due to the issues the rainfall is causing in that country. "It's hard to harvest leeks at the moment, so there's much less supply, which drives prices up," begins Guy De Meyer of Demargro.
Artificial intelligence could be coming to a field near you if a Fort Lupton High School alum has his way.Randy Sasaki, a 1975 Fort Lupton grad, leads a company that hopes to create artificially intelligent crop monitoring systems to help agriculture get a jump on insects and other pests that can harm crops.
Fresh Direct has issued its crop report for 8th to 15th, November highlighting the effects of Storm Ciaran that caused chaos for many growers.It explains how the recent spate of storms, culminating with Storm Ciaran, has created huge problems for growers with excessive rain causing widespread flooding and making it difficult to harvest products from wet fields.
Potato growers and suppliers are facing tighter supplies of potatoes and a big hike in prices in the wake of the recent poorweather.The spot, or wholesale price, of potatoes was “currently at least double what you would expect at this time of year and looks like it’s going one way”, said Tim O’Malley, group MD of Nationwide Produce.
Équiterre, la Fédération de la relève agricole du Québec (FRAQ), la Coopérative pour l’Agriculture de Proximité Écologique (CAPÉ), Protec-Terre and Vivre en Ville have joined forces to launch Alliance SaluTERRE.
Sixty people turned up to harvest 1ac of beetroot on the farm of Joe and Sandra Burns in Killeagh, east Cork, on Saturday after a call-out on social media.The crop should have been harvested in October, but after the severe flooding in east Cork, the Burns couldn't get back into the field with machinery.