Unexpected spring freeze wreaks havoc in agricultural crops
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- Hundreds of hectares of apple, cherry, plum, walnut and even grapes in blossom were reported to have been damaged in Korça and Dibra
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TIRANA, April 25 - Uncommon spring freezing temperatures in some northern and southeastern Albanian regions have wreaked havoc on agricultural crops especially fruit trees and vineyards in blossom.
The damage is bigger in the southeastern Korà§a and northern Dibra region, heavily relying on agriculture.
After weeks of warm weather, temperatures fell to below zero in some regions over the past week and there was also snowfall.
Hundreds of hectares of apple, cherry, plum, walnut and even grapes in blossom were reported to have been severely damaged in Korà§a and Dibra regions.
Visiting farmers in Korà§a this week, agriculture minister Edmond Panariti pledged compensation through government and donor funds, but also urged farmers to get insured.
"The agriculture ministry has started negotiations with serious insurance companies to offer farmers affordable packages," said Panariti.
Last January, uncommon freezing temperatures hitting a three-decade low damaged hundreds of hectares of greenhouse crops.
Frequent floods hitting the country in the past few years have also caused damage to agriculture.
Agriculture, a key sector to the Albanian economy employing about half of the country’s population but providing only about 20 percent of the GDP, is one of the most climate-sensitive of all economic sectors, and without clear plan for aligning agricultural policies with climate change, the livelihoods of rural populations are at risk, the World Bank has warned.
Experts have also warned the increasing nationwide cannabis cultivation during the past couple of years will have severe economic consequences for the country, including the shift of attention from the key agriculture sector, negative social impacts, the distortion to the labour market and the strengthening of the criminal economy.
