Valley farmers surveying crop damages from cold snap
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Valley farmers are still trying to figure out how many crops they lost to last week’s cold front.
In some cases, farmers Channel 5 News spoke with say they can see the damage.
“The products seem to fared pretty well all things considered,” Chief Operating Officer at Little Bear Produce James Bassetti said.
Four days ago, Bassetti and his team prepared to see widespread damage to their crops.
“We thought with the low temperatures and the high winds that were originally forecasted,” Bassetti said.
Bassetti’s company supplies herbs and other vegetables to retailers across the state.
Last week, they raced to cover their crops and harvest what they could before the cold weather rolled in.
“We have seen a little burned and discoloration in some of our commodities, a little bit of dehydration,” Bassetti said.
Bassetti says the cold came early this season, something they usually expect in January or February.
While they are still checking in damages, Bassetti says it won’t be as bad as what they saw in 2021.
“Back in 2021 it took us out for six weeks of production, so right now as it stands right now, we’ll be able to get back into harvesting you know today and tomorrow,” Bassetti said.
Bassetti says that even though it is early on, it looks like most of the crops will do okay.
“We’ll do our best to clean the product of any residual damage from the freeze, and hopefully we’ll have a good season,” Bassetti said.
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