Key Points
- Three severe rain events in four weeks have destroyed cherry crops in South Australia.
- Cherry prices have reportedly soared to $40-$60 a kilo, but even $30 per kilo is double what consumers paid last Christmas.
- Warm weather in recent weeks has created the perfect climate for prawns, with prices lower than last December.
The festive cherry will cost some Australians double after wet weather devastated farms at the peak of the summer harvest.
Severe thunderstorms damaged homes and left thousands without power in South Australia earlier this week, with for the third time in four weeks.
Fruit Producers South Australia CEO Grant Piggott estimated that the loss of crops across the state could be as high as 60 to 70 per cent.
He explained that three to four days of consistent rain this week had drenched the fruit, causing the skin to stretch and crack, with larger cherries more prone to this kind of damage.
"It's hard to work out the loss in terms of dollars but the South Australian industry is worth $30 million each year," he told SBS News.
Piggott said the loss extended beyond crops, highlighting the expensive effort of recovering what was left in the orchards following the storms.
"It's a quite expensive exercise because your pickers take a lot longer to get good cherries than they would if they were all good," he said.
How much will cherries and prawns cost this Christmas?
Reports mid-week confirmed that cherry prices at Adelaide Central Market soared to $49.99 a kilo due to the storms.
Piggott said prices had since stabilised to over $30 a kilo, but this was still double the usual $13-$14 a kilo expected around Christmas.
"If you want premium cherries that measure 30 millimetres, they might be $35 a kilo. While [smaller cherries] will be around $20 heading into Christmas," he said.
Cherry crops were also ruined in NSW when bad weather hit the state in late November, but the losses weren't as widespread.
While wild weather has damaged the cherry harvest, a warm start to the summer has created perfect conditions for prawns.
Prawns are more affordable than last year after warmer weather ensured a good supply. Source: AAP
“It’s been a good season for growing prawns and prawn catching. And so where we find ourselves is with an abundance of supply,” she said.
Aptus Seafoods located at the South Melbourne Market said customers would save anywhere between $10 to $20 a kilo, compared to last Christmas.
While different sizes at supermarket giant Woolworths will cost anywhere between $14 to $35 a kilogram.
How will the weather impact the cherry industry?
Cherry picking varies from mid-November to February, with bad weather impacting supply both domestically as well as overseas.
Australia supplies cherries to Southeast Asian neighbours including Vietnam, Singapore and Thailand.
Piggott said the international market had "no appetite" for split fruit.
"Exports have been hit quite hard because whereas the domestic market might take cherries that are marked or affected … [for exporting] they've got to be perfect," he said.
South Australian Minister for Primary Industries Clare Scriven said the state was still assessing the damage to the cherry industry and considering how best to support producers.
"The advice I have received from the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) is that, unfortunately, cherry producers are the most significantly impacted from these severe weather patterns with over 50 per cent of the ripe fruit being no longer viable for harvest," she said in a statement.
"However, they are continuing to harvest fruit, and the good news [is] there will be sufficient supply available to South Australian consumers, in time for Christmas.
"We’re encouraging all South Australians to support primary producers and farmers across the state by buying local produce this Christmas season.”
