From frost to floods, agriculture faces severe damage in several regions

2026-01-09 07:34:00, Ekonomi CNA

Frosts in the first days of the new year and now the floods of recent days have destroyed a large part of the production and newly planted seedlings in areas with intensive agriculture.

Civil emergencies reported yesterday that thousands of hectares of land in Lezha, Shkodra, Berat, Lushnja and Durrës have been flooded, which, among other things, has caused great damage to agriculture.

Mariglen Ziu, a farmer in the Berat area, claimed that a large part of the greenhouses were severely damaged by the frosts of the first days of the year and those that survived have been submerged under water.

Ervin Resuli, an expert on agricultural issues, said that the entire country is facing losses these days. The damage has also included livestock food.

These difficult days are not only a loss for farmers, but for our entire economy. Some greenhouses were at the peak of their second season's production and others had just planted seedlings for the early spring 2026 season.

Damage to production will lead to a restriction of supply in the markets. Experience has shown that in these cases, prices increase. Floods in agriculture, from individual losses, turn into imbalances in the national economy, with a decline in production and an increase in inflation.

The damage caused will be carried for a long time, as in many greenhouses, along with production, the frames and plasmas have been damaged. Also, the entry of sludge into the greenhouses will make it difficult to resume work and planting during the following period.

Albanian farmers do not have the capacity to cope with natural disasters, which have increased in recent years, while the Albanian government offers very low support compared to the region and the EU.

Also, our farms do not apply private insurance schemes, while the compensation mechanism for natural disasters does not function either.

Civil emergencies claimed that about 3000 ha of agricultural land are under water in Lezha. In Berat, about 95 ha of agricultural land was under water and about 200 ha of flooded agricultural land was in Fier. In the Shkodra area, water has also covered the national road and lands with a history of flooding./ Monitor