How California floods could drive up food prices in the US

California in the United States has been battered by months of storms that have brought strong winds, rains and snowfall to the state. The powerful Pacific storm carrying precipitation has left the state waterlogged, harming farmers’ produce. In recent months, at least 12 atmospheric rivers have ushered in a spurt of rain and snow in the western US state, with more expected this week. As per forecasters, coastal mountains and the Sierra Nevada will likely witness heavy snow, with accumulations up to four feet. A backcountry avalanche warning has been issued for the greater Lake Tahoe area, reported Associated Press (AP). Central California coast is also bracing for more showers. Let’s understand how floods have affected food prices in the US. Storms pound California The storms, which started late last December, have flooded communities and left buildings under a barrage of snow. Owing to the recent floods, evacuation orders were issued in parts of Tulare County. Due to blizzards and deluges, the total water content is more than double in California’s Sierra Nevada snowpack and almost triple in the southern Sierra, as per AP.

The cities of Oakland and Monterey are expected to break records for rain in March by this week.

“Preceding storms have saturated soils which will result in trees coming down and the potential for more power outages,” National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Gass was quoted as saying by CNN. “We still have road closures in the mountainous areas because of the sheer number of landslides and rockslides since we have been impacted by so many storm systems,” Gass stated. Officials are preparing for the record snowpack on the Sierra Nevada to melt as it can threaten more flooding in the region. [caption id=“attachment_12373072” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] A series of storms have brought rain, snow and strong winds to California. AP File Photo[/caption] On the other hand, the storms have also brought much-needed water for the two largest reservoirs, Shasta and Oroville, of the state. As per AP, these reservoirs have touched historical averages to date after depletion. ALSO READ: What is Pineapple Express, the phenomenon behind brutal storms in California? Flooded farmlands The back-to-back storms that inundated farms have threatened California’s agricultural production. Farmers are unable to take tractors to the fields because of the mud. There has been a “catastrophic level of water,” Tricia Stever Blattler, executive director of the Tulare County Farm Bureau, told ABC News. “There’s a lot of cropland under water right now,” she said. “I can’t even begin to tell you the numbers – north of 50,000 acres. Maybe closer to 75,000, 100,000”. Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said last week there have been “devastating impacts to our agricultural community and farmland.” According to an AccuWeather report, flooding caused by incessant rains has destroyed some crops across the state. “If there was a planted crop of leafy greens, that unfortunately is a total loss and will have to be plowed under simply for food safety reasons," Norm Groot, the executive director of the Monterey County Farm Bureau, told AccuWeather. The Salinas Valley, which grows lettuce and other produce, has also been hit by rain and storms since January. An expert has predicted that some farmers in the valley would have to restart planting from the beginning. Mark Shaw, vice-president of operations for California-based Markon Cooperative, told The Canadian Press: “Tens of thousands of acres of farmland have flooded in Salinas since the beginning of the year”. He said in an email that below-average temperatures were also adding to farmers’ woes. The flooded fields have led to a delay in the planting of crops. “The longer you delay planting, the longer you’re going to have to wait for those crops in grocery stores,” Andrew Genasci, executive director of San Joaquin Farm Bureau, was quoted as saying by Alaska’s News Source. Moreover, the excess rains and flooding have affected livestock and dairy farms, which were valued at more than $42 billion in 2020, reported AccuWeather. However, some crops like strawberries have benefited from the additional water. “The strawberry crop is actually looking really good this year for the 70 or 80 per cent that did not have any flooding or any damage. They could actually overproduce because of the rain because of the mixture of soils,” Jeff Cardinale, spokesperson for the California Strawberry Commission, said, as per AccuWeather. Food prices likely to rise Amid flooded farm fields and warnings of more rain, food prices are likely to go up as California is responsible for producing one-third of vegetables and three-quarters of fruits and nuts in the US, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture. “California is the leading agricultural state in the United States,” produce expert Michael Marks said, as per a report in Alaska’s News Source. California is also America’s largest agricultural exporter and the country’s only exporter of several products including almonds, artichokes, dates, garlic and much more, as per the California Agricultural Statistics Review 2020-2021. “A lot of what we produce here ends up on everyone’s dinner tables across the nation every day. We are the salad bowl of the world,” Groot was quoted as saying by AccuWeather. The crop losses triggered by a series of storms could affect exports. Though grocery prices have so far remained steady, they could increase in the coming weeks if the situation worsens, says reports. [caption id=“attachment_12373092” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Floods have damaged crops across California. AP (Representational Image)[/caption] As per Alaska’s News Source report, California accounts for 99 per cent of all the tomatoes for processed canned goods, and thus the cost of pasta and pizza sauces could be affected. “All that’s grown in the San Joaquin Valley and the Sacramento Valley,” Marks said. “Well, that’s going to cut the supply, and that’s going to impact prices of tomato sauce all the way into next year.” Agriculture experts have also forewarned about lettuce prices, saying they could increase from April. Flooding in Salinas has left experts worried as the region produces a large amount of lettuce consumed in North America. Last year, disease damaged lettuce crops in Salinas, prompting severe shortages. John Bishop, the national buyer for Canada’s produce distributor Fresh Start Foods, stated that the region would not be ready for the production of lettuce this April, reported The Canadian Press.  Warning of a limited supply for four to six weeks, Shaw told The Canadian Press: “Basically, we are setting up for another demand-exceeds-supply market driving up prices as we experienced last October, November and December”. Bishop said this “significant gap” is likely to last until July. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.