Fruit fly outbreak forces Husayniya farmers to harvest early, sell unripe crops to pickling factories

KARBALA — Farmers in the Husayniya district of Karbala say a surge in fruit fly infestations is decimating orchards ahead of harvest, forcing them to pick unripe apples and grapes and sell to pickling factories at low prices to avoid total losses.

“I own five dunams of fruit and palm trees, and we hope our voices can reach the authorities through you, even though most farmers have lost hope in any response because this happens to us every year,” said Adnan Ali, a local grower.

Ali said he spent more than 3 million Iraqi dinars (about $2,085) on fertilizers this year, but it made no difference. “The apples haven’t ripened yet, but I had to pick and sell them to pickling shops,” he told 964media. “It’s the same with my grape crop—I plan to sell it early because if it stays on the trees longer, the fruit fly will ruin it.”

He said pest control teams from the Agriculture Ministry typically carry out anti-fruit fly campaigns in early April, but this year they never arrived. “These campaigns rely on specific timing to limit the spread of fruit fly,” he said. “The trees got infected.”

Ali said the response has weakened significantly over the years. “The efforts from agriculture teams to fight the fruit fly are extremely weak,” he said. “Since the fall of the former regime until now, the pesticides used by these teams have been ineffective and don’t meet the needs of farmers.”

“In earlier times, they used to spray from planes,” he added. “The treatment was so strong even birds would fall from the sky. Now, we’re left with pesticides that have no effect.”

He said he is now considering cutting down his trees entirely. “I’m thinking of turning them into firewood because I’ve lost hope in any meaningful government action.”

Some farmers have attempted to manage infestations themselves, but Ali said these efforts are often futile. “A few of us are paying from our own pockets to spray our trees, but it doesn’t work. Neighboring orchards aren’t doing anything, and that brings the flies right back.”

He explained that fruit flies typically infect crops about 10 days before ripening, especially apples, plums, grapes and apricots—making timing crucial for containment.

Without urgent support and effective pest control strategies, growers in Husayniya say they may abandon their orchards altogether.