cereal farmers and breeders challenged by the heat wave

After the drought, the heat wave is damaging the crops. On a plot of barley in the Yvelines, 90% of the ears have not reached normal size. “We are on a spur that is almost a third smaller”, notes David Lavenant, cereal farmer. Irrigation of cereals is prohibited and farmers are considering adapting to global warming. “We will have to change crops, find crops that are less water-intensive”explains David Lavenant.

Cows are also victims of the heat wave. Beyond 22 degrees, they are under heat stress. A breeder invested in a fan to cool their enclosure. “Honestly, I didn’t think that in June he would be so useful to us”, says Olivier Grente, cattle breeder. With the heat, cows eat less and do not allow farmers to achieve good yields. For the single heat wave day of Saturday June 18, the sale of Olivier Grente’s cows will be delayed for a week, at the breeder’s expense.