The Italian rice crop… and the challenge of drought
It rained only one day all year round, and the afternoon temperature was again close to 100 degrees, as Fabrizio Rizzotti was on his way to his 220-acre fields of rice, a water-requiring plant. The rice stalks were dry and stunted in the field, which was trampled rather than submerged in water.
The rice is already dead, said Rizzotti, and “not a single grain of rice can come from this,” he said, pointing to a nearby field a little greener, and in dire need of more water it is, and said, “In a few days this field will die.” also”. In Europe’s sweltering summer, few places were affected more directly than northern Italy, where a severe drought dried up a major river, triggered an emergency, and put the country’s famous agricultural flatlands in big trouble.
The drought is also causing Italians to worry about things they take for granted: not just the green rice fields typical of this region, but also the foods derived from them, especially the risotto, which has been overpriced due to the scarcity of the rice crop. For most of his life, Rizzotti ate risotto several days a week at meals made by his mother, and then his wife. Rizzotti says he had no choice but to continue sowing for another year.
Another 15-hour workday, backed by a meal of his favorite local risotto, filled with pork and beans. But as periods of harsh climates became more common, rice began to be considered a valuable commodity. Italy’s main agricultural group expects yields this year to be 30% lower than normal. Across Rizzotti’s farm, other rice farmers are guessing if the coming years will be the same. In the irrigation canyons that run the length of the Rizzotti property, fed with the help of a local canal system established in the 1860s, the water is usually several feet high. Now there is only a simple thread of water.
More recently, one afternoon, with sweat on his forehead, he got into his car and checked other parts of his belongings. The condition of a field can change from place to place, depending on the composition of the soil, the distance from the main water channels and the decisions of the farmer. But even the healthiest fields in the Rizoti lands, which have the most water, had dark green spots that signaled the onset of drought. Crickets can be heard and dragonflies can be seen flapping over the brown grass. The only other motion was the motion of the neighboring field’s sprinkler on the horizon, to aerate the little remaining water through a cornfield. “Everyone faces difficult choices,” said Rizzotti, “and my neighbor is watering corn to save his cows, but he has left his rice to die.”
Rice can only grow when submerged in water. Farmers say an inch or two of standing water will work when the plant is young, but it needs six or seven inches in hot summer. The Risotti rice field lacks all these conditions. Last year, his company produced 350 tons of white rice. This year they will be lucky to reach 150 tons, he said. This is the best case scenario, and then his profits will drop from $30,000 to $15,000. “The only hope is that the rain will start,” he added. According to the weather forecast, temperatures will rise to 100 degrees Fahrenheit with the sun shining continuously throughout the week. This part of Italy, a plain between the Alps and the Po River, is the dominant rice-growing region in a country that produces half the rice crop in the European Union.
Arborio rice is the most popular type of Italian rice, and is synonymous with risotto among Americans. But in northern Italy, among grandmothers and chefs alike, it is derided as second-rate because it quickly turns into soft rice and does not hold its shape. The precious rice, instead, is carnaroli, which keeps longer. Rizzotti says heat and drought now define his work, which at this time of year has a lot to do with water management: determining which fields are getting water.
In the meetings of the consortium that manages the distribution of water among the farmers and establishes the rationing system, there have been sharp disagreements and shouting matches. Rizzotti considers himself not just a farmer, but an investor and strategist. The more relevant question now is whether severe dehydration is an anomaly. Some farmers he knows are betting things will get back to normal. But Rizzotti said farmers may not want to face reality, because it is too painful.
Chico Harlan and Stefano Petrelli*
Two correspondents for the Washington Post in Rome.
Published by special arrangement with the Washington Post and Bloomberg News Service.
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