Record-breaking heat is causing apples to ripen earlier: the harvest season is underway

Following the early start to the grape harvest and the accelerated pace of the tomato harvest, the record-breaking heat means that the Italian apple harvest – the most widely consumed fruit and also the one most sold abroad – must also begin ahead of schedule. This has been announced by Coldiretti, which states that production will be affected by the heat and drought and will not exceed 2.27 million tonnes, representing an estimated 2 per cent drop compared with last year.

The start of the harvest at the Furlani farm in Trento comes at a delicate time in the agricultural season, which is generally caught between the adverse effects of climate change – with high temperatures during the summer and widespread drought, particularly in the north – and, on the other hand, rising costs linked to international tensions. Suffice it to say that it is estimated that expenditure on agricultural diesel and fertilisers – two of the products most affected by tensions in the Middle East – accounts for around 50 per cent of a farm’s production costs.

Trentino-Alto Adige is Italia’s leading apple-producing region, accounting for over two-thirds of the total. With the first Gala apples now being picked – a process which is also getting under way in other areas – the harvest season begins, continuing through September and October with other varieties, and concluding only in early November with the later-ripening varieties.

To mark the occasion, an assessment will be made of the forecast harvest trends, taking into account the record temperatures.

Italia is one of Europe’s leading apple producers and also boasts the highest level of biodiversity, with six quality designations recognised by the European Union: Val di Non PDO apples, Alto Adige PGI apples, Trentino PGI apples, Melannurca Campana PGI apples, Valtellina PGI apples and Mela Rossa Cuneo PGI apples.