Farmers in one of America's top-producing states left reeling after season of devastating weather: 'It's going to impact the wholesale market'

An apple orchard in North Carolina is facing worries about this year's crops following harsh weather conditions.

What's happening?

According to WYFF News Channel 4, a recent hailstorm has caused minor damage to the apples at Stepp's Hillcrest Orchard, but combined with other events, this is a worrisome experience.

"Countywide, we may be off 40%, 50% of our usual crop," Mike Stepp, a farmer at the Hendersonville, NC orchard, told WYFF4.

While the latest storm was less problematic than expected, this was the third hailstorm in the last month and comes less than a year after Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc on the area.

"It's going to impact the wholesale market probably more than anything else," Stepp added, per WYFF4. "Those go to grocery stores, and they have to be pretty much perfect, whereas our processing apples don't have to be quite as perfect, and our pick-your-own apples don't have to be quite as perfect."

Why are the impacted apples important?

The decrease in wholesale sales highlights a major issue facing supermarket produce. Often, food that doesn't fit the perfect aesthetic standard gets thrown out or wasted. This contributes to the food waste problem across the U.S., as the Department of Agriculture estimates 30-40% of the food supply is wasted.

One shopper online was able to take steps to combat this issue after they asked the grocery store if they could have their outdated produce to give to their pet tortoise, and was given a massive quantity of perfectly good vegetables that the store decided not to sell.

Furthermore, the decrease in actually viable apples due to the weather impacts the farmers like Stepp, who rely on apple sales to survive, the people who count on apples as food, and the local pollinators. Better crops are better for everyone.

What's being done about the apple crops?

As bruises or other hail-related harm to the apples can subject them to diseases, Mike Stepp is taking preventative measures to keep the apples healthy.

"We try to keep them covered for diseases because when you open the flesh, you're apt to have some disease," he told WYFF4.

While natural disasters and weather events are inevitable, they are exacerbated by increasing global temperatures, often brought on by burning dirty fuels. By educating yourself on critical climate issues, such as how you personally contribute to extreme heat, you can take small steps to help do your part to lessen the effects of these events.

What single change would make the biggest dent in your personal food waste? Not buying food I don't need 🧐 Freezing my food before it goes bad 🧊 Using my leftovers more effectively 🍲 Composting my food scraps 🌱 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

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