‘It’s a critical time’: European farmers struggle through driest spring in a century

Extreme weather costs the EU about €28.3bn in lost crops and livestock per year, more than half the losses stem from droughtWhen drought descended on Hendrik Jan ten Cate’s farm in 2018, slashing his onion yield to just 10% of a regular year, he slogged through days of heavy labour to draw water from canals and pump it to his crops. One day, overworked and anxious to extract as much as he could, Ten Cate fell into the canal and broke his arm.This year, with plants already growing but a severe dearth of rain to nourish young crops, the Dutch farmer is once again watching the weather forecast with worry. Continue reading...

May 22, 2025 - 06:18

‘It’s a critical time’: European farmers struggle through driest spring in a century

Extreme weather costs the EU about €28.3bn in lost crops and livestock per year, more than half the losses stem from drought

When drought descended on Hendrik Jan ten Cate’s farm in 2018, slashing his onion yield to just 10% of a regular year, he slogged through days of heavy labour to draw water from canals and pump it to his crops. One day, overworked and anxious to extract as much as he could, Ten Cate fell into the canal and broke his arm.

This year, with plants already growing but a severe dearth of rain to nourish young crops, the Dutch farmer is once again watching the weather forecast with worry. Continue reading...