Its cultivators yolk Kozani they are faced with its harsh consequences climate changeseeing their production remain at low levels for the fourth consecutive year.
As stated by the president of the Shotgun Producers’ Cooperative, Vasilis Mitsopoulosthis year’s harvest, which began on October 25, is expected to be little better than previous ones, with production not exceeding a ton.
“Stressed” plant
The main cause of the problem is climate change. The prolonged droughts of summer, the high temperatures and raindrops of autumn they “stress” the plant. This has the effect of the bulb weakens and eventually disappear. Many growers see half the bulbs in new fields go to waste, causing them to become frustrated and they abandon cultivation.
APE-ME/DIMITRIS STRAVOU
Lack of workers
The already difficult situation is aggravated by labor shortage. The harvest is excellent painful (150,000 flowers are required for 1 kg of yolk) and workers are scarce. Mr. Mitsopoulos attributed the lack to demographic decline but also in delignitizationwhich forced many families, mainly foreigners, to leave the area.
Despite the satisfactory daily wage (around 60 euros) and the Cooperative’s guarantee that buys all the production with immediate payment (producer price 2,000 – 2,200 euros/kg), few wish to deal with this particular crop.
APE-ME/DIMITRIS STRAVOU
New products
However, the producers’ income has improved, as now the entire production is sold to standardized format in markets such as USA and the Switzerland. At the same time, great success is noted by Yolk drinks. Mr. Mitsopoulos announced that in the next period it will be released from pharmacies and dietary supplement based on the yolk.