Farmers are suffering millions in losses as extreme weather destroys plum and strawberry crops across KP.
Nearly 80 percent of this year’s strawberry crop was destroyed before reaching the market. PHOTO: PEXELS
PESHAWAR:
What should have been a season of harvest and profit has become a season of despair. For farmers in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), severe windstorms, unseasonable rains and changing weather conditions have destroyed crops worth millions of rupees, highlighting the growing impact of climate change on Pakistan’s agricultural sector.
On the outskirts of Peshawar, where plum orchards have been cultivated for generations, farmers say years of hard work were wiped out in a matter of hours. Ripe fruit is now scattered across muddy fields after strong winds and heavy rain hit the region just weeks before harvest.
For Shakeel Khan, a farmer from Armar village, the recent storm hit at the worst possible time. “The fruits were almost ready to be harvested. One night of strong wind and rain destroyed everything,” he told The Express PK Press Club.
After 24 years of farming, Shakeel revealed that almost all the plums in his orchard had been uprooted from the trees, causing losses of up to Rs 800,000. Similarly, Nawaz Armar, another orchard owner, said nearly 90 percent of his mature crop was destroyed, resulting in losses of around Rs 5 million.
Farmers and traders estimate that more than 70 percent of the region’s plum orchards have been affected. In addition to fruit loss, high winds damaged trees, threatening future yields. “It is a double loss: the fruits have disappeared and the trees have also been damaged,” said a fruit trader in Tarnab.
Many farmers warn that repeated climate-related disasters could force them to abandon farming altogether. Small farmers, already facing rising costs of fertilizer, seeds, fuel and transportation, are finding it increasingly difficult to recover from these losses.
The crisis is not limited to Peshawar. In Charsadda district, strawberry growers also suffered severe damage due to untimely rains. Farmers in Sarkai, Utmanzai and Wali Bagh estimate that nearly 80 percent of this year’s strawberry crop was destroyed before reaching the market.
Zareen Khan, who has been growing strawberries for three decades, revealed that he had invested between Rs400,000 and Rs500,000 in his crop this season. “We waited months for the harvest, but the rains dashed our hopes. Limited access to agricultural loans and rising production costs left farmers with few options to recover,” lamented Khan.
Weather experts say such extreme events are becoming increasingly common. Muhammad Faheem, deputy director of the Pakistan Meteorological Department in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, noted that strong winds, hailstorms and thunderstorms frequently occur between late April and June.
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“The wind speed during the recent storm reached nearly 90 kilometers per hour, causing extensive damage to orchards, solar panels, electricity poles and other infrastructure in Peshawar and neighboring areas,” Faheem said.
Agricultural experts warn that climate change is reshaping agricultural patterns across the province. Dr Fareeda Anjum, director of soil and plant nutrition at Tarnab Agricultural Research Institute, pointed out that outdated agricultural practices and excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides also contribute to environmental stress.
“Researchers are promoting organic fertilizers, climate-smart farming techniques and modern agricultural technologies to help farmers adapt as they can no longer rely solely on traditional methods. Training, technology and adaptation are essential to protect crops from future climate-related threats,” said Dr Anjum.
As extreme weather events become more frequent and unpredictable, farmers in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa fear that without urgent support and effective climate adaptation measures, agriculture, one of the province’s most important economic sectors, could face an uncertain future.
