Malika: It’s the peak of strawberry season but the constant threat of rain is threatening to take a toll on this years crop. Our Sam Carter is from a farm in Baldwinsville with details of just how the rain is affecting this crop.
Reporter: Thanks so much Malika, with how beautiful it is out here it’s hard to believe we just experienced the third wettest may on record and if you’ve been around here in June it hasn’t been much dryer. I went out to Emmi Farms to see how the heavy rain has affected this years crop.
Here at Emmi Farmers Market and Farm in Baldwinsville, New York. The shelves are empty but, soon that’ll change. It’s peak growing season but heavy rains have threatened to damage this years crop. For at least one local farmer so far the strawberry crop is coming in as expected.
Emmi: Surprisingly they’ve taken it really well but now that the fruit is beginning to ripen I don’t know how much more it can take.
Reporter: According to the National Weather Service, the month of May brought with it six inches of rain that’s more than double the average for central New York and dispite this picking season being largely being unaffected. Emmi says their still not out of the woods yet.
Emmi: It can ruin the fruit that’s ripe there yea.
Reporter: How would that affect your business.
Emmi: Well it would be a loss, it would be a loss in revenue.
Reporter: So, until further notice local berry farmers are going to keep one eye on their berries and the other on the barriers.
Reporter: So great news for strawberry lovers and strawberry farmers alike. Stay tuned because at 4:45 I’m going to tell you how rains coming up could affect how much you pay for strawberries. Until then let’s go back to the studio.
By Sam Carter Baldwinsville, N.Y. (NCC News) — Despite heavy rains in May and June, this year’s central New York strawberry crop is strong.
Some berry growers feared that the harvest would be negatively impacted by all the rain the region endured over the past six weeks.
Tony Emmi, the proprietor of Emmi Farms, said that it came as a shock that his strawberry crop was unaffected, but adds that they are not out of the woods yet.
“Surprisingly, they’ve taken it really well. But now that the fruit is beginning to ripen, I don’t know how much more it can take,” Emmi said.
Although the first yield of the season was good, Emmi said that if the second is washed out, it could affect the price consumers pay for strawberries.
“If enough people lose their next picking it could affect the price,” Emmi said.
Emmi said he does not think it should not affect the price too much.
“Not more than a couple of cents a pound,” Emmi said.
According to the National Weather Service, central New York experienced its third rainiest May on record. The average rainfall for the month is just over three inches, while this past May saw more than six inches of rain.
