Record snowfall in January has severely damaged apple orchards in the northeastern Japan prefecture of Aomori, the country’s largest apple-producing region, with authorities fearing losses could exceed 10 billion yen ($65 million).
Among many areas that saw above-average snowfall in January, the city of Hirosaki reported a record 126-centimeter accumulation, according to a local meteorological observatory.
The weight of snow has badly damaged apple trees grown in the city and 10 other municipalities, with more snow expected this month, raising concerns about the impact on this year’s autumn harvest in the prefecture, which produces about 60 percent of Japan’s apples.
An apple tree, aged 50 to 60 years, is seen with a trunk that snapped under the weight of snow in Aomori, northeastern Japan, in January 2025. (Kyodo)
Yoshimoto Kudo, 85, who cultivates around 150 trees at his 4,000-square-meter orchard, said many branches were broken, and the trunks of some trees as old as 50 to 60 years even snapped.
Kudo has been working to reduce damage by spreading snow-melting agents and reinforcing branches, but uncleared farm roads have left three of his five orchards inaccessible.
“I won’t know the full extent of the damage until the snow melts, but I estimate that about a quarter of my trees have been affected,” he said.
To deal with the snow, the Aomori prefectural government has allocated a supplementary budget to fund aerial distribution of snow-melting agents using unmanned helicopters.
Officials said an assessment of the full damage will be conducted after the weather warms but warned that further snowfall in February could worsen the situation.
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