Fruit growers on the far north coast of News South Wales (NSW) have suffered extensive damage to their crops following a 15-minute hailstorm on Wednesday afternoon.

Media reports indicate that the hail has caused losses of up to A$100,000 each on many individual orchards running from south of Lismore in a north-east line through to Byron Bay.

Stonefruit production in the region was particularly badly hit. NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian McDonald said that the damage comes one year after a similar storm hit several of the same orchards last spring in the middle of the stonefruit harvest.

Blueberry harvesting is also in full swing in the region, and some producers in Byron Bay and Lismore have suffered significant hail damage, according to key industry sources.

Peter McPherson of BerryExchange, Australia's largest blueberry grower-packer-marketer, told Fruitnet that its own operation in Corindi emerged unscathed from the hailstorm, but that other producers were not so fortunate. 'We were very lucky, but growers in Byron Bay and Lismore were hit, as well as some of the growers in Coffs Harbour,' he said.

Mr McPherson predicted that short-term losses could amount to around 100-150 tonnes, or 10-15 per cent of domestic market supplies, which will push up prices. 'Consumers will be paying more for blueberries in the coming weeks,' he noted.

The hailstorms will not have any impact on Australian blueberry exports, however, he said. Exports from the region are usually in full flow at this time of year, as Australia is one of the world's only sources of supply in August/September, but Mr McPherson said that international sales have been hit by competition from Argentina and Chile, whose production is rising sharply. 'Argentina is in coming into full production this week, and the prices being quoted by both Argentina and Chile are extremely low,' he said.

Soaring domestic market demand has more than made up for the decline in exports, however, with BerryExchange's sales up by 100 per cent in the season to date, according to Mr McPherson.

The extensive damage to stonefruit crops in the region will not have any impact on exports either, since the regions affected are focused on supplying the domestic market.

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