Growers are spending ‘a fortune’ on irrigation and committing water resources to early new season carrot crop as Yorkshire becomes second region confirmed in drought status
Carrot growers in the north of England are facing drought conditions just weeks away from the start of the new season crop.
Quality is being maintained due to high levels of irrigation, with growers committing all their water resources to the early crop.
“We have a massive drought going on. We had a bit of rainfall in the week of 20 May, an average amount, but that’s the only rain we’ve had since 20 March,” said Rodger Hobson, carrot grower at Hobson Farming and chair of British Carrot Growers Association.
It comes as last week the Environment Agency upgraded Yorkshire as the second region in England to be classified in drought status, following the driest spring in 132 years.
The decision sees the regulator stepping up its operational response in Yorkshire, including communicating with consumers and monitoring drought plans by water companies. The north west of England entered drought status in mid May, but has since been relieved by some rainfall.
The early new season crop for carrots is already underway in Norfolk and Suffolk, with Yorkshire carrots due to begin in mid July.
“The early crop looks good. But we’re spending an absolute fortune on watering and committing all our water resources to the early crop, because we have to,” said Hobson, who said it’s too early to determine the effects on yields.
“The maincrop looks mixed – only time will tell. It’s very uneven germination because of the drought. At this point in the season, it’s all to play for.”
One of the issues in Yorkshire is that, as carrots are grown in the same field only once in ten years, growers rely on varying water availability from rented farmland.
“Water resources are managed regionally. In North Yorkshire, there aren’t many reservoirs but our farm is on one of the biggest aquifers in the area and we have a couple of good bore holes,” said Hobson, who grows carrots for food manufacturing.
“One farm relies on a licence from a river and the Environment Agency switched that off a month ago,” he added.
Yorkshire environment, planning and engagement manager, Claire Barrow, said: “We had 22 days of almost no recorded rainfall in May. While we have had some rain at the start of June, it has not been enough to reverse the impacts of the prolonged dry weather.
“We are working with Yorkshire Water to make sure they enact their drought plans. We also encourage people to be aware of the environmental impacts of droughts as we enter the summer period and note the small steps we can all take to save water.”
Overall, Hobson said the mood among carrot growers is positive, as any rainfall could still put the season back on course. The second annual National Carrot Day is planned for 3 October this year, after a successful industry-funded launch of the new PR campaign in 202
