According to industry reports, record-breaking heatwaves in the summer of 2023 is impacting agricultural production across Japan. The average temperature between June and August was approximately 1.76 degrees Celsius higher than the average 1991-2020 average, marking the highest temperature increase on record.
Summer and autumn vegetables, which are currently in the harvesting stage, have seen low yields due to poor flowering. Even Hokkaido, which typically experiences lower temperatures than the rest of the country, has seen unusually hot weather. In central Hokkaido, tomatoes are not pollinating properly, resulting in no fruit setting and pushing yields down around 10 to 20 percent. Even when they do set fruit, there is a high incidence of softening and sunburn, leading to an increase in discarded and low grade produce.
Central and southern Hokkaido have seen broccoli production suffer. JA, a farming cooperative, reported that "due to rotting and inability to produce marketable products, yields have significantly decreased."
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Source: lnks.gd