Australian government officials have arranged to transport about 4 million pineapples from flooded parts of Queensland to ensure that the crop won’t be lost, according to the Australian Associated Press.

A barge was scheduled to arrive in Yeppoon, about 26 miles northeast of Rockhampton, the center of the massive flooding, on Jan. 4. It was expected to take the pineapples, as well as mangoes and lychees, to Gladstone, farther south on the coast. The fruit would then be trucked to southern markets. Roads leading to Yeppoon and Rockhampton have been cut off by the flooding.

The barge is expected to carry about 480 metric tons of pineapple and 60 MT each of mangoes and lychees, according to Australian Food News.

Without the pineapple rescue, growers would have lost AU $5 million, according to Australian Food News. The mango and lychee supplies each are valued at about AU $500,000.

Consumers in other parts of Australia would have been without the tropical fruit. Fruit and vegetable prices are expected to soar because the flooding has affected one of the nation’s main growing areas, according to local media reports.

Photo: wikipedia.org

Source: www.freshfruitportal.com