Tarn and Garonne produces over 80% of France's plums and this year the early varieties have been badly hit by frost in February. Some producers reckon that yields are down by almost 90%. 2017 had been a bumper year, as we at Mas del Sol can confirm, as our two ancient pruniers were heavily overloaded.
Older, traditional varieties may fare better but meanwhile producers want the government to declare a natural catastrophe. Production overall is estimated at 15000 tonnes, compared with 45000 tonnes last year.
Sellers say they will import plums from Spain and Italy so there should be no shortage, but buying local may be dearer this year.
One of the things we lost in the lightning strike was a freezer full of frozen plums - perhaps we need to up-date our insurance claim!
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