A perfect storm of kumara-growing conditions could lead to record prices in the shops this year.
The entire crop would usually be tucked away by the end of April in the Dargaville and Ruawai districts, where the country’s commercial crop is grown.
However, waterlogged conditions mean workers on some farms are trudging barefoot through mud to pick up dirt-caked clumps of kumara because mechanical harvesters cannot be used.
Many farms were up to two months late in planting and then, needing moisture, were hit with a very dry, hot summer.
Those factors already spelled a low yield but leaving the crop in the ground to "fatten up" left it vulnerable to late summer/early autumn rains that caused flooding and compacted the soil.
"Then it was ‘wait until tomorrow, it’ll dry up'. Then it was, 'no, not today'", Aratapu grower Warren Suckling said.
A handful of farmers were employing many hands to manually harvest the crop, he said.
— Northern Advocate