Drought cuts Burgenland pumpkin harvest by up to 70 percent

Burgenland’s pumpkin harvest is nearing completion with high-quality seeds but sharply reduced yields because of extreme drought, ORF reported. Some farmers have suffered losses of up to 70 percent.

Pumpkins generally cope relatively well with heat, but the prolonged dry period has severely affected this year’s crop. The fruits are smaller, and the seed yield per hectare is well below the long-term average.

Hannes Köppel, a farmer from Poppendorf who grows pumpkins on 3.5 hectares, said he expected to harvest about 300 kilograms, compared with the 700 to 900 kilograms he would normally produce. The shortfall is causing significant loss of income for the part-time farmer.

Köppel initially delivers his seeds to agricultural produce trader Christian Leitgeb in Königsdorf, where they are cleaned and dried. Leitgeb said farmers there had reported losses of up to 70 percent.

However, the quality of the seeds has remained high. Leitgeb described it as “surprisingly very good,” with very few poor-quality seeds.

Wolfgang Hartinger, owner of the Kloiber oil mill in Heiligenkreuz, also said the pumpkin seeds were of good quality. He added that reserves were still available, meaning pumpkin seed oil should remain available in sufficient quantities despite the exceptional harvest.