Farmers in Bulgaria just got hit with a one-two punch. First came an unexpected freeze. Then came locusts. The result? A season's worth of cherries is gone.
What's happening?
According to FreshPlaza, in Kyustendil, the region known as the "orchard of Bulgaria," nearly every cherry tree was destroyed by a brutal spring frost.
On April 8 and 9, temperatures dropped below minus-2 degrees Celsius (28.4 degrees Fahrenheit), freezing trees before they could blossom. That's all it took.
"Below minus 2 degrees there is no salvation, the trees are completely frozen," cherry grower Petar Domozelkov told Nova, via FreshPlaza. Farmers burned straw to try to warm the air around their trees, but it didn't make a difference.
At the Institute of Agriculture in Yabalkovo, experts confirmed the damage. No buds. No fruit. No cherries.
To make matters worse, Moroccan locusts have swarmed the Sandanski region in southwestern Bulgaria. These pests are chewing through whatever greenery the frost didn't finish off.
This is only the second time in 30 years that Kyustendil's cherry harvest has been a total loss.
Why does this matter?
When the fruit disappears, so do the paychecks. Entire families in this region rely on cherry farming to make a living. Losing a crop doesn't just mean higher fruit prices. It also means some people won't be able to pay their bills or put food on their tables.
Shoppers in Bulgaria will now depend mostly on imported cherries from Chile, Turkey, and Greece. That means prices will stay high and local fruit will be hard to find.
Extreme weather is hitting earlier and harder in many parts of the world. We've seen it with mangoes in India and lettuce in California. Now, it's cherries in Bulgaria. The pattern is clear: The planet's rising temperatures are disrupting crops, threatening food security, and pushing already struggling communities even further behind.
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Not enough time ⏳ What's being done about it?
Agricultural experts are warning growers not to overwater or overfertilize trees that survived the freeze. It could make things worse.
Longer term, there's no shortcut around the real issue: our warming planet. But there are things we can do. Switching to cleaner energy at home, driving electric cars, and supporting local growers all help cut the pollution that's heating things up.
Bulgaria's cherry season may be gone, but this story is bigger than one fruit. It's a warning and a reminder: Our food, our economy, and our communities are all connected.
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