Ever since the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) came out with its annual report on climate change in early August 2021, voices of concern have been raised worldwide by climate activists and common citizens alike. As the earth’s temperature is set to rise by 1.5℃ in the next few years, the report mentions the effect of climate change on agriculture and food supplies. While this topic may still be seen as a round table discussion by various political and economic systems around the world, its effects have begun to show on the ground.

The life cycle of fruit crops is longer than that of cash crops like wheat and rice. Most fruits are sensitive to changes in their environment and even the slightest change in temperature or moisture in their surroundings can destroy them for good. If this change remains constant, the fruits begin to lose their quality.

 

Shifting climatic zones, drought, temperature rises, illness, and insect outbreaks are just a few of the effects of climate change. Fruits suffer as a result of climate change. Tropical fruits like tropical oranges, papaya, and avocados are displacing temperate fruits like apples in orchards as a result of climatic zone shifts. Temperatures in the temperate regions are too hot to sustain apple crops that require an undisturbed winter. Climate change has an impact on many phases of fruit development. Some of the effects of climate change on fruits include delayed maturity, delayed ripening, poor fruit quality, poor color development, fruit sunburn, poor panicle emergence, inappropriate pollination, and so on.

 

A study conducted at IISR, Calicut using GIS models has shown that many areas that are presently suitable for the cultivation of spices would become unsuitable in another 25 years. There would be new areas that are presently unsuitable, becoming highly suitable for the cultivation of spices. This will apply to other horticultural crops. India is the second-largest producer of fruits after China, with a production of 44.04 million tons of fruits from an area of 3.72 million hectares. A large variety of fruits are grown in India, of which Mango, Banana, Citrus, Guava, Grapes, Pineapple, and Apple are the prominent ones. Due to the temperature rise, crops will develop more rapidly and mature earlier. For example, Citrus, Grapes, and Melons will mature earlier by about 15 days. Strawberries will produce more runners at the expense of fruits. Specific chilling requirements of Pome and stone fruits will be affected, and hence the dormancy breaking will be earlier. Delay in monsoon, dry spells of rains, untimely rains during the water stress period, supra-optimal temperatures during flowering and fruit growth, and hailstorms are some of the most commonly encountered climatic conditions experienced by the citrus growers over the past decade or so. Climate change increases the atmospheric temperature and causes changes in rainfall patterns. As a result, Banana cultivation may suffer from high temperature, soil moisture stress, or flooding/waterlogging. High temperature and moisture stress also increase sunburn and cracking in Apples, Apricots, and Cherries, and an increase in temperature at maturity will lead to fruit cracking and burning in Litchis (Kumar and Kumar 2007). Air pollution has significantly reduced the yield of several horticultural crops- this has led to an increase in the intensity of certain physiological disorders like the black tip of Mango which is induced by coal fume gases, sulfur dioxide, ethylene, carbon monoxide, and fluoride. Leaf production increases by one leaf per month for every 3.3-to-3.7-degree Celsius rise in minimum or mean temperature from 10-20 degrees Celsius or 13.5 to 25 degrees Celsius respectively.

 

Out of the millions affected by this climate crisis is Bhuran, a 55-year-old fruit seller from Lakhimpur Kheri, a small town in Uttar Pradesh. He roams from street to street, pulling his cart full of fresh fruits. He says his job gets progressively difficult each year. “I have been selling fruits on the streets for as long as I can remember. My father used to sell fruits too. Fruits then were very fresh and never went to waste.”, he says. “Now I have to wake up at 4 in the morning just to push my way to the front of the line to get my hands on the best produce. At my age, it is hard.”

Bhuran gets his produce from the farmer’s market where he sometimes gets into a tiff with the supplier for giving him poor quality produce. “No one wants to buy rotten apples and papayas. I have had customers who refuse to buy my fruits at a standard price. Fruits nowadays begin to rot even before I’m able to make half of what I spent on them.”

 While conservatives and climate change deniers continue to deny that climate change exists, people like Bhuran continue to struggle to make a living.