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ARCHIVED - Heavy rains destroy 30 per cent of Murcia crops
The worst affected harvests in the Region are broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce
The persistent and intense rains that plagued the Region of Murcia throughout March and at the beginning of April have had a devastating effect on many crops in the community, affecting some 30% of the harvests for this year. According to the agricultural and framing association COAG, of the 360,000 hectares of productive arable land in the Region, 200,000 have either been “affected or very affected”.
The bad weather has also caused delays in harvesting and pruning, which has resulted in rot, root suffocation and fungi.
Broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce are among the most damaged crops, with 80% of the harvest showing signs of root rot and suffocation, translating into losses in the region of 12,000 euros per hectare.
Additionally, 90% of melon and watermelon crops have been returned to the nurseries to be destroyed, resulting in 14,000 euro losses per hectare. The devastation will likely affect the next yield also, as farmers can’t plant new crops in the still muddy fields. The municipalities of Lorca, Torre Pacheco and Cartagena have been the worst hit.
An incredible 250 litres per square metre of rain has fallen in Murcia in the last five weeks, which is more than 80% of the annual average rainfall for the Region.
And it’s not just the torrential rain which has caused problems either. In the northwest of the Region, Saharan dust blanketed almond crops, staining the outer shell and rendering the nuts worthless at market. This, coupled with the storms, has destroyed close to 90% of the almond crops, with some 40,000 of the 70,000 hectares of almond trees “severely affected”.
Coag has estimated that 70% of the apricot production in the Region has been lost, as has also been the case with earlier varieties of peaches and nectarines, while citrus fruits have been plagued by fungal diseases.
The president of COAG-IR, José Miguel Marín, has expressed his “dismay” at the critical situation.
“It is devastating; we were aware that the damage was severe, but once detailed by areas and crops, the loss is much higher than expected and also occurs in the worst context known by Murcian agriculture. With some exorbitant production costs, we now find ourselves with a good part of our crops lost due to the rains,” he said.
Image: Archive
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