News Environment Fruit Markets
B.C.’s stone fruit crops take major hit from variable winter weather

Stone fruit growers in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley are preparing for an exceptionally lean year due to warmer-than-normal conditions in early winter, followed by a harsh cold snap in January. This resulted in the trees never going completely dormant before the frigid January chill killed many nascent buds, limiting the 2024 crop’s potential before the season even started.

The president of the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association, Peter Simonsen, said in an interview with the Canadian Press he expects harvests for peaches, apricots, nectarines and plums to be down at least 90 per cent, and the B.C. Cherry Association has already warned crops could be “dramatically” reduced. |READ MORE