A cold and snowy April has wrought havoc on cherry farmers in Washington and other Northwest U.S. states, with some farmers losing 98 percent of their crop. As a result, this year’s cherry crop could be the smallest in a decade.
“It’s unprecedented,” Kurt Tonnemaker, who oversees sales efforts of his family’s two farms, told the Kitsap Sun. “It’s hard to plan for that.”
The cold temperatures and their impact on cherry production means consumers will have to wait longer for cherries to arrive in stores and cherry prices will likely be higher this year.