The secretary general of Belgium’s VBT trade body told the NFU Conference that climate is making risk management and disease control increasingly difficult, as competition with North Africa intensifiesClimate change is the number one challenge facing European fruit and veg producers, according to the secretary general of Belgium’s fresh produce trade body VBT. “Climate is, as far as I’m concerned, the main challenge,” he told the room. To give you an idea of impact, a storm in Slovenia caused the damage of 11 per cent of their GDP. He warned growers are facing increased threats from pest and disease, driven by a changing climate, while the amount of chemical plant protection products declined by 50 per cent between 2011 and 2024. There’s a lot of work to be done and I’d like to hope this can be included in the horticulture plan.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 25, 2026 15:23 UTC