Drought cuts Weinviertel pumpkin kernel harvest by up to 70%

Pumpkin farmers in Lower Austria expect a sharp drop in this year’s harvest after a hot, dry summer, ORF reported. In the Weinviertel region, some growers are forecasting up to two-thirds fewer kernels than last year, with consequences for the production of protected Styrian pumpkin seed oil.

Harvesting began this week on a field near Guntersdorf in the Hollabrunn district. The machine collects the pumpkins, separates the kernels from the flesh and transports them to a drying facility. The rows of pumpkins are farther apart than in previous years, and many of the fruits are smaller.

The farmer who owns the field normally harvests more than 800 kilograms of dry kernels there. This year, he expects about 300 kilograms.

Gerhard Loicht, the machine operator, is also a pumpkin farmer in Breitenwaida and chairman of a harvesting cooperative. More than 80 farmers belong to the cooperative, cultivating about 1,200 hectares of pumpkin fields and jointly operating a drying facility. “We expect 50 to 70 percent less than last year,” Loicht said.

Heat hit pumpkins during flowering

The losses vary from field to field. Anton Brandstetter, a crop production adviser at the Lower Austrian Chamber of Agriculture, said the worst-affected fields were planted later and had their flowering period during the summer heatwave.

On some severely affected fields, plants produced no pumpkins at all. Others produced fruits only the size of tennis balls, which could fall through the harvesting machinery, Brandstetter said.

The biggest losses are expected in eastern and northern Lower Austria, including the districts of Hollabrunn, Gänserndorf and Horn. The foothills of the Alps have fared better, although farmers there also expect lower yields.

Some fields are still waiting for harvest

The Loicht family has not yet begun harvesting its 30 hectares of pumpkins near Breitenwaida, south of Hollabrunn. Some leaves have not fallen and the fruit is not fully ripe, so the family is waiting.

“Normally there is one pumpkin per square metre here,” pumpkin farmer Herta Loicht said. “This year there are significantly fewer plants and fewer pumpkins.” She hopes the existing fruit will ripen further before harvesting begins.

Lower Austrian kernels supply Styrian oil production

The poor harvest will affect more than farmers in the Weinviertel. Two-thirds of the kernels processed by Styrian oil mills into protected Styrian pumpkin seed oil come from Lower Austria, according to the report.

Demand for kernels was particularly high this year, Brandstetter said. He expects the market will not be fully supplied. Premium products should have enough kernels from Lower Austria or Styria, he said, but discount products may have to rely on imports from countries such as Poland or China.

Protected growing areas for Styrian pumpkin seed oil in Lower Austria include the districts of Hollabrunn, Horn, Mistelbach and Melk, as well as parts of Gänserndorf and Korneuburg-Stockerau.

For farmers, the smaller harvest initially means lower income. Despite the limited supply, there is little expectation that prices will rise because many pumpkin farmers agreed their sales contracts months ago, Loicht said.