Greek grape growers have been contending with unseasonably high winds and rainfall as well as economic strife.
Rainfall and high winds on three separate occasions struck in early August in the Corinth area.
Mimi Spilipoulou, managing director of ASPW Trading Ltd, said: “It was the first time we faced this disaster in the area. The season is expected to be very tough in terms of quality due to fact that the plastic covers of the fields went with the wind… It will be a very tough season accompanied by the financial crisis.”
Spilipoulou reports that the harvest in Corinth is well underway after starting on 6 August and is due to start in Crete week. After the storms in Corinth, temperatures have risen considerably, but happily anticipated problems with botrytis have not materialised. She said: “We have had temperatures reach highs of 39°C to 41 °C and the summer has been long and hot, but now temperatures are forecast to fall to 34°C. We do not have botrytis but all this heat and rain has affected quality, particularly in the mountainous areas of Corinth.”
The main issues are with soft berries and weak stems that threaten degradation in the crop post-harvest and can lead to browning in the fruit in cold store.
The harvest is expected to continue until the first week of October with Flame Seedless expected to start next week following on from Thompson Seedless and then Crimson Seedless coming on stream later next month.
