Panel SA: Rural producers in Bahia suffer from lack of access and fear drought after rain

The heavy rains that hit Bahia, mainly the south of the state, made it difficult for rural producers to access plantations. In addition to flooding, roads and bridges were destroyed.

According to Suzana Viccini, president of the Mulheres do Agro Oeste da Bahia, the rains made it impossible to apply pesticides and harmed flowering.

“If we manage to apply it, everything goes to the soil and not to the plant”, he says. Producers project a significant drop in the next harvest.

Farmers also fear that a severe drought will occur after the storms, delaying the recovery of plantations.

Odacil Ranzi, president of Aiba (Association of Farmers and Irrigants of Bahia) says that, at the moment, the efforts are all aimed at serving those most affected by the rains, taking food, clothing and hygiene products. Afterwards, Ranzi says, the focus will be to assemble a task force to recover the lost crops.

The storms are a reflection of the weather phenomenon La Niña and the increase in water temperature in the Atlantic Ocean. Despite being common in this period of the year, thunderstorms register atypical intensity and duration. Bahia remains in a state of alert, as more rain is forecast in the coming days.

with Ana Paula White