September 6, 2013

Due to excessive flooding, grain output in Tongjiang, located in the north-eastern province of Heilongjiang, China may decrease sharply.

It's the worst flooding the region has seen in decades, and has left farmland and homes ruined.

Crops in this region grow from late March to October, with harvest coming only once a year. And while farmers can usually pull in solid sales, this year, they're calculating their losses.

With floods affecting roughly half of the farmland in the region, authorities say grain output could be cut by up to 30%.

Zhang Xueping, deputy director of Tongjiang City Agricultural Bureau, said, "The weather conditions are very good for crops this year. But floods affected about 77,000 hectares of farmland. It may cause grain output to decrease by 370 million kilogrammes, and an economic loss of RMB720 million (US$188 million)."

But Tongjiang only makes up 1% of the farmland in Heilongjiang province. So while the region's total output will likely remain steady this season, if the flood waters don't subside soon, the impact on the farmland could be felt in the years to come.