Harvesting fields upended by Nongshim... severe crop damage due to autumn rains

(Nationwide General=Yonhap News) With an unprecedented autumn rain making it difficult to see the clear sky, the fields that should be brimming with the joy of harvest are filled with sorrow.

Rice, as well as fruits and vegetables such as horticultural crops, have suffered from diseases and pests, and timely harvesting has become difficult, leading farmers to plow up their precious fields.

On the morning of the 16th, in a cabbage field in Miwon-myeon, Sangdang-gu, Cheongju-si, North Chungcheong, instead of a bountiful harvest, the cries of farmers echoed.

Farmers plowed up 1,000 square meters of fields with a tractor, demanding compensation and support measures.

In North Chungcheong, 107 hectares of cabbage wilt disease damage was reported from 330 farms in Cheongju and 20 hectares from 66 farms in Goesan.

On the same day, in an apple orchard in Anlim-dong, Chungju-si, Mr. Im (59) sighed while looking at apples showing cracking (bursting of the fruit).

The fruit absorbs too much moisture, causing the skin to burst, and due to insufficient sunlight, the color does not develop properly or the sugar content is low, significantly reducing the commercial value.

Mr. Im said, "Last year was difficult due to the heat, but this year it's the excessive rain that's the problem," and lamented the sky, "I come out and manage it from morning, but if it keeps raining like this, all efforts are futile."

In Boeun, North Chungcheong, which produces 10% of the nation's jujube distribution, the opening of the jujube festival is just one day away, but the spread of anthrax disease is causing sorrow.

Mr. Yu Jae-cheol, chairman of the Boeun Jujube Association, said, "It's the harvest season, so we can't spray any medicine," and "Some farms have already suffered over 50% damage."

From the 15th of last month to a month later, there were 18 days of rain in North Chungcheong, with a cumulative rainfall of 277.6 mm, the third highest since weather observations began in 1973.

In Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, where it has been raining almost every day except for four days this month, the rice harvest rate has not reached 50%.

If the harvest is delayed, the purchase and drying processes will also be delayed, inevitably worsening the quality of the rice.

Securing feed for barns is also becoming difficult, and livestock farmers are already worried about rising feed prices.

Gangwon's Donghae coast, which overcame extreme drought, is now suffering from continuous rain without a moment's respite.