Unusual anomalous rains and unstable weather conditions that are not typical for April have caused serious damage to agriculture, especially fruit growing, in the regions.
As a result of the rainfall, damage was caused to more than 6,500 hectares of cultivated land. Especially fruit orchards and vegetable fields located in Khachmaz, Shabran, Guba-Khachmaz, Mountainous Shirvan, Shirvan-Salyan, and Karabakh regions were exposed to floods and waterlogging.
The current situation has caused more damage to early-ripening fruits such as cherries, plums, peaches, etc. It is estimated that the damage caused by the rain could reach nearly 10 million manats.
These damages will inevitably lead to a decrease in productivity.
Which fruits will sharply rise in price in summer?
Medianews.az reports that in an interview with Bizim.Media regarding the topic, the head of the Liberal Economists Center, Akif Nasirli, stated that the anomalous rains and hail in April mostly affected fruit trees that were in the flowering period:
"Continuous rain at this time disrupts pollination, rots the flowers, and hail directly destroys the fruit-bearing buds. As a result, the tree either does not produce fruit at all or produces very little. The most affected are early-flowering stone fruits.
Apricots, cherries, sour cherries, and plums bloom in early and mid-April. Hail and downpours occurred in Quba, Khachmaz, Shaki, Zagatala, and Ismayilli during that period. Farmers say that in some orchards, 50-70% of apricots and cherries have fallen off."
According to the economist, the prices of apricots, cherries, sour cherries, and plums will rise sharply.
"The fruit-bearing season for these fruits is June-July, meaning the period when they should enter the market en masse will coincide with low yield. When supply is low, prices rise sharply. Cherries, which were 3-4 manats last year, will not fall below 7-8 manats this summer, apricots will become similarly more expensive.
Sour cherries and plums will also decrease for the same reason. Especially when sour cherries used for processing are scarce, jam and compote prices rise as well. Peaches and nectarines bloom a bit later, but continuous dampness has also increased fungal diseases in them. Diseases like moniliosis and leaf curl have ruined part of the crop. It is realistic for peaches to be 30-40% more expensive in July-August compared to last year."
Akif Nasirli does not expect a sharp price increase for apples and pears:
"Apples and pears bloom relatively late, so April rains affected them less. However, the orchards that were hit by hail are damaged. Still, apples might not be as abundant as last year, but a sharp price rise is not expected.
Our interlocutor also thinks that the price of strawberries will increase:
"The rain also affected strawberries. Open-field strawberries rotted; gray rot disease spread. Greenhouse strawberries were less affected, but the open-field production decreased. Strawberries in May-June will also be more expensive compared to previous years.
There has been no serious damage to late summer fruits like watermelons, melons, and grapes yet.
If the weather passes normally, their prices will remain relatively stable. However, moisture created after the rains poses a risk of disease to garden crops, which may affect prices later."