El Niño, which increased the temperature in the region of Arequipa by two degrees, is affecting the agricultural sector as it has lead to the loss of more than 20% of the potato crop in the valley of Tambo and has brought the presence of the Rust plague affecting wheat crops.
The head of Agriculture, Mirko Avendaño, said that the valley of Tambo has 2,500 hectares devoted to potato crops, which had an average yield of 30 tons per hectare. He added that they had lost 20% of the crops to the intense heat caused by El Niño.
Crop losses coupled with the sale of potatoes in the southern areas of the country, such as Puno, Moquegua, and other regions, and of Bolivia, caused prices to increase to the point where the tuber reached 2.50 per kilo in the city of Arequipa.
Source: rpp.pe