Europe's farmers warn about food shortages

Europe's farmers have warned that prolonged spells of extreme hot and dry weather have devastated harvests and will lead to food shortages and price hikes across the continent.

The stark heads-up follows months of heat waves and minimal rainfall that have left dusty, dry fields and withered or dead crops.

The collective brand Prince de Bretagne, which represents around 1,300 vegetable growers from the French region of Brittany, told The Guardian newspaper vegetable and grain crops are especially at risk.

"The vegetable sector is facing a historic crisis," Prince de Bretagne told the paper, noting the size of harvests and quality of produce has taken a nosedive, with zucchini yields down by 25 percent, lettuce yields down by 35 percent, pea yields 40 percent smaller, broccoli down 60 percent, and artichoke yields expected to be halved. France's agriculture ministry has said the country's maize harvest is likely to be 35 percent smaller this year. And cows have been impacted by the lack of fresh green grass and milk yields are down by as much as 15 percent.

The continent's unprecedented hot and dry weather, which has seen temperatures remain in the mid-30 C range, has been chalked down to human-caused global warming compounded by the El Nino weather phenomenon, which exacerbates weather extremes.

In Italy, where about 60 percent of farmland is now impacted by drought conditions, the country's largest farmers' organization, Coldiretti, said poor yields coupled with damage caused by wildfires and storms will cost the sector upward of 3 billion euros ($3.47 billion).

The fact that almost all of Europe has been hit by unusually hot and dry weather means crop yields will be down throughout the European Union, so the bloc will likely need to compete with other nations to find new sources of food from beyond its borders, which is sure to push up prices.

Eric Legras, from France's 4,400-member canned and frozen vegetable producers' association, told Le Monde newspaper: "Usually, one region fares better, which helps compensate. This year, all our main production areas have been hit; and at the same time."

The hot and dry weather has also put massive strain on water reserves, prompting many European governments to announce restrictions on water use.

In the United Kingdom, the prime minister's office has warned water companies not to push up their prices because of droughts, saying customers "cannot be treated as a blank check" to boost revenues.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said during a visit to farmers in southwest England last week that his government is preparing a 65-million-pound ($87.95 million) package of support for producers grappling with the extremely challenging conditions, but he acknowledged the scale of the problem, saying it was the most severe for a generation.

earle@mail.chinadailyuk.com