The damage to farmers since the beginning of 2019 is more than NIS 40 million

The current high-rainfall winter is a blessing for farmers across the country, but the weather, especially the stormy weather last week, also caused major damage to crops. Data from Kent, the fund for the insurance of natural disasters in agriculture, shows that since the beginning of the month the company's situation room has received more than 550 reports of damage to various crops throughout the country.
According to preliminary estimates by Kent assessors, the damage since the beginning of January alone is estimated at more than NIS 40 million. However, some of the damages can be estimated only in the coming weeks and months, since the winter damages are characterized, among other things, by a decline in the final produce. Kant notes that such damages are almost impossible to prevent and the only contention is with the economic damages covered by the insurance.
According to Kent data, much of the damage was caused by the impact of a hail storm and flooding in various crops, including citrus and avocado. The hail and the strong winds that shake the fruit on the tree injure the fruit bark and in many cases disqualify it for marketing, with the final amount of damage known only when the fruits reach the packing houses, and the strong winds caused a large eagle of fruit from the trees.
Other significant damages were caused to many vegetable crops, including potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, spices, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage and more. It should be noted that some of the crops were damaged after the collapsed hothouses or the seagrass were torn apart and the crops were exposed directly to the hail, the flooding, the heavy rains and, in some cases, the cold.
The data indicate that about half of the reports were due to damage caused to crops in the south of the country, mainly in the communities surrounding the Gaza Strip. Most of the damage in this area was caused by storm storms in the potato crops and by the rupture of the spawning of the growth houses. Other significant damages were caused by hail caused by vegetable crops in the Shfela area, as well as by citrus and avocado leaflets as a result of the strong winds.

Picture: yedidya Sharoni