Due to a winter with extremely high temperatures and a lack of cold rations, a decrease of about 40% in the summer fruit harvest is expected

The Fruit Growers Organization in Israel: "The state must understand that it must support agriculture and prepare for extreme weather events"

Yaron Belhasan, CEO of the Fruit Growers Organization in Israel, says that the last winter was characterized by high temperatures and an average amount of precipitation, with very few rainy days and a lack of cold rations, which are necessary for the deciduous fruit trees (apple, cherry, apricot, etc.), in order to wake up from slumber. winter, bloom and bear fruit optimally. In addition, the month of January was particularly hot and brought about changes in the flowering times, which were characterized by cloudy days and occasional rain (in March), which prevented the embalming phase (the development of the fruit) from taking place as required.

As you remember, last February we reported on a report by The meteorological service will report changes in the distribution of rains but not in their amount.

The connection between the phenomenon and the climate crisis is clear because the report shows that the average number of rainy days in the period 2020-1991 shows a 10% reduction in the number of rainy days compared to the period 1990-1961.

"Cold doses are necessary for the development of the falling summer fruits, over many hours (over 600 hours of cold at 0-7 degrees Celsius). The fruit growers anxiously followed the extreme changes in the weather throughout the winter and were pained to discover every morning that the fruit trees were having difficulty producing a crop. In some of the orchards there was also a lack of uniformity in the size of the fruit and there are orchards that failed to produce fruit at all! All of this resulted in a sharp decrease in the amount of the summer fruit harvest by at least 40%, in the pear, apricot, peach and nectarine crops and in one of the most beloved fruits of the Israeli public - the cherry, which this season's crop is small compared to last year and will be only about 1,000 tons, 2,500 tons Less than last year."

Belhassan further emphasizes: "Farmers are the first to be affected by extreme weather events and are at the bottom of the profit chain of the fruit they grew. A shortage of fruit and high demand at the beginning of the summer season, increases the price of fruit, when there is also a gap in the mediation of the marketing chains. It is important to remember that it is not the farmer who determines the final price for the consumer, but the marketing chains. Just before Shavuot I call for consumer responsibility both on the part of the general public and on the part of the marketing chains, we must all unite under the understanding that we must protect agriculture and farmers alike, for the sake of maintaining food security for years to come, otherwise the farmers will have no other option than uprooting plantations due to unviability and support," says Belhassan.

The farmer Louis Elam of Jish (Gush Halav), a grower of cherry and nectarine orchards tells painfully: "The cherry orchards are empty of fruit, unfortunately the orchards are in a state of zero harvest! And for the first time I will not sell a cherry this year. For many years we have not seen such a harsh sight of a bare tree, we have no choice but to wait for the late varieties expected in the coming months. For years we farmers have been warning about the consequences of the climate crisis that could lead to a shortage of agricultural produce, now we all feel it, the fruit growers, the marketing chains and the general public, if we don't know how to properly plan our future in agriculture, it will slowly disappear."

The organization of fruit growers in Israel represents about 3,500 fruit growers throughout the country, who cultivate about 360,000 dunams of orchards (not including citrus) within the country's borders. The branch makes up about 23% of the agricultural output in Israel.

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