For farmers in central and northern Europe, this summer’s unusually high temperatures aren’t just uncomfortable, they are putting their harvests at risk, The Guardian reported. The drought, caused by high temperatures and low rainfall since May 2018, is the worst in recent memory for the region, according to The Guardian. “Older families around me are comparing this to 1976,” 25-year-old Dutch farmer Iris Bouwers told The Guardian. “My dad can’t remember any drought like this.” Bouwers said her family stood to lose €100,000, as their potato crop is likely to fall by 30 percent, and their savings won’t cover the loss because of an investment made in a pig stable. They aren’t the only ones.
The German Association of the Fruit, Vegetable, and Potato Processing Industry announced they expected to see a smaller, less quality potato crop that would lead to a 25 percent revenue loss in the agricultural and potato processing sectors, Earther reported. But once this year passes, climate change predictions for the region suggest that farmers could see many more like it. Read EcoWatch article
