Massachusetts' cranberry harvest squeezed by drought
9/27/2016 12:00:00 AM
CATEGORIES:
Agriculture
AFFECTED AREAS:
Massachusetts
Barnstable County, MA
Berkshire County, MA
Bristol County, MA
Dukes County, MA
Essex County, MA
Franklin County, MA
Hampden County, MA
Hampshire County, MA
Middlesex County, MA
Nantucket County, MA
Norfolk County, MA
Plymouth County, MA
Suffolk County, MA
Worcester County, MA
Start Date: 8/24/2016
- End Date: 9/27/2016
A hot, parched summer may leave some Massachusetts cranberry growers without enough water to flood bogs and collect the berries. Other factors working against cranberry growers were rising production costs, decreased crop values, changing consumer habits and rising competition from other cranberry growing regions.
Attleboro Sun Chronicle (Mass.), Sept. 27, 2016
Massachusetts cranberry growers were told by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agriculture Statistical Services to expect a 5 percent drop, compared to production in 2015. Drought has been growers’ greatest concern, according to the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association, noting that having enough water is “critical to ample fruit sizing.”
Many growers also flood cranberry bogs for harvest, but with extreme drought in 16.8 percent of the state, water could be a limiting factor come harvest time.
Springfield Union-News & Sunday Republican (Mass.), Aug. 25, 2016
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