Farmers devastated by unprecedented 50% drop in harvest yields: 'The worst year ever'

There are few fruits as juicy and fragrant as a ripe lychee, and farmers in China know it. Guangdong, a southern province, produces an average of 1.5 million tons each year, according to The World of Chinese.

However, Guangdong's lychee harvesters reported that the 2024 season was "the worst year ever," as growing became extremely difficult due to heavy rains and hotter temperatures, TWOC reported.

What's happening?

The region's overall lychee harvest dropped an astonishing 50% last year. One grower, Wang Pengcheng, usually pulls in 500 to 1,500 kilograms of lychees; last year, he only got 20 single fruits, according to TWOC.

For these farmers, the cause of the massive decline is clearly the region's major environmental shifts. 2023 was China's hottest year ever, which stunted the ability of lychee trees to produce buds. After that came months of extreme rain that robbed the crops even more. Rains reached an all-time peak in April at nearly 50 centimeters, TWOC reported.

This unpredictability has raised serious concerns about the future of growing the popular drupe — the same family of fruit as peaches and plums.

"The old ways of farming by following solar terms are no longer reliable," Guo Rui, another lychee grower who suffered in 2024, told TWOC.

Why are lower lychee yields concerning?

For starters, losing the bulk of the lychee harvest was a major financial setback for farmers. Guo estimated his losses at 300,000 yuan, which is over $41,000. Plus, it's not only lychees that are at risk. Other staple crops also took significant hits, such as corn in flooded regions and rice in areas facing drought, per TWOC.

These disruptions to the food chain all translate to lower supply in the market and higher prices at grocery stores. It also means a more precarious environment for other plants and animals, since biodiversity is critical to a healthy ecosystem.  

What's being done to support lychee farming?

In all likelihood, more severe extreme weather events are on the horizon, and lychee farmers are gearing up with unique strategies to bolster their crops and rebuild yields.

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Their new techniques range from treating soil with compost to enhance fertility and improve its resilience, pruning their trees differently to promote growth, hanging sandbags on branches to strengthen fruit-bearing, and diversifying their other crops to have backup options, TWOC explained.

According to the outlet, local artists are also starting to key on the issue in Guangdong. They have created plays and interactive exhibitions that raise awareness of the complex struggles farmers are facing in hopes that more publicopen discussion can help other industries move away from planet-heating practices, too.

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