Lychee Prices Skyrocket in Taiwan as Climate Change Devastates Crops
Lychee prices have skyrocketed to record highs in Taiwan as farmers report a drastic drop-off in their crop yield this year due to the effects of climate change.
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00:00These ripe clusters of lychees are ready to harvest.
00:06But this year, trees in Dali, central Taiwan, are bearing much less fruit.
00:11Farmers say it's due to climate change.
00:20To stay afloat, lychee farmers have raised their prices,
00:23causing the fruit to hit a record high price in Taipei's markets.
00:30This is a box-packed lychee.
00:33In the past, it was about half the price.
00:37Last year, it was about NT$200 or more.
00:41That's when the price skyrocketed.
00:43Farmers in Dali say they usually harvest about 8,000 metric tons of lychees,
00:48but this year it's down to just around 1,000.
00:51They say prolonged extreme heat and dry weather during the spring
00:54have jeopardized the fruit's delicate flowering process.
00:57When it's time to pick up the fruit, there's no water.
01:00Some of them can't be picked up.
01:03Some of them keep falling off the tree.
01:08Taiwan's lychee farmers aren't alone.
01:11Climate change and unusual weather patterns
01:13have also slashed harvests of lotus seeds, red dates, and mangoes this year.
01:19Taiwan hopes to mitigate the effects of climate change
01:22by switching to renewable energy sources,
01:24with a goal for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
01:27But think tank Ember points out that over 80% of Taiwan's energy
01:32still comes from fossil fuels.
01:35And as the country's fruit farmers continue to see their harvests slashed,
01:39the fear is that 2050 may come too late for their vulnerable crops.
01:44Dolphin Chen and Wesley Lewis for Taiwan Plus.