Belgian Crops Ripening a Month Earlier Due to Climate Change

Farmers across Belgium are bringing in their harvests up to a month earlier than they did 40 years ago, a dramatic shift driven by rising temperatures that is reshaping the country’s agricultural calendar and forcing growers to adapt to a new climatic reality.

According to RTBF, harvests that once began after July 31 are now starting in June, with some crops ripening three to four weeks ahead of the schedule farmers followed in the 1980s and 1990s. The trend has accelerated over the past decade, with the current season running approximately 15 days earlier than the ten-year average.

A Half-Century of Change in the Fields

Daniel Delvaux, an agricultural entrepreneur in Amay celebrating his 50th harvest season, has witnessed the transformation firsthand. “It’s roughly 15 days compared to the last ten years,” he told RTBF. “If we talk about 20, 30 or 40 years ago, we’re practically three weeks to a month earlier.”

The early start to the 2026 season follows a rare “red alert” heatwave in late June that raised concerns over milk and meat production, as reported by Reuters. By July 1, an estimated 60 to 65 percent of barley had already been harvested, according to Terres et Territoires.

Jean Deray, head of cereal services at Groupe Carre, acknowledged the pace of change. “It’s going very fast, starting harvests in June requires adaptation, but it’s our role and we know we’ll have to get used to it in the future,” he said.

Climate Science Confirms the Trend

Climatologists warn that the early harvests are not an anomaly but a clear signal of long-term climate shifts. Xavier Fettweis, a climatologist at the University of Liège, told RTBF that agriculture and food security are at risk. “In a Belgium at +3°C, yields will generally decrease,” he said. “Either we’ll have too much rain and the fields will be completely flooded, or not enough water and nothing will grow.”

The Belgian Climate Centre projects that climate conditions over Belgian territory will evolve to resemble those currently found in southern France. Its December 2025 workshop on climate-resilient agri-food systems warned that the stability of production yields is at stake, with risks of synchronized low crops across large regions.

A report from the Walloon Air and Climate Agency (AWAC) reinforced the urgency: “Without rapid adaptation, Walloon agriculture risks seeing its stability, productivity and profitability severely undermined by climate change.”

Economic Pressures Mount

While the early harvests have not produced record-breaking yields — 2026 is delivering average output — the shift adds another layer of uncertainty for Belgian farmers already navigating global market pressures. Mathieu Comijn, a cereal farmer, explained that grain prices are set on international markets, disadvantaging Belgian producers against lower-cost regions.

“Cereals are traded on the stock exchange at a global price,” Comijn told RTBF. “For us, cereals are really a necessary evil for crop rotation. In terms of profitability, it’s not great.”

The food industry is Belgium’s largest industrial sector, making agricultural climate impacts a significant economic concern. Belgian wheat is primarily marketed domestically for bioethanol, animal feed, and human consumption.

Adapting for the Future

In response to the accelerating changes, some farmers are turning to regenerative agriculture — practices such as no-till farming, permanent soil cover, and diversified crop rotations that improve soil health and water retention. Géraud Dumont, a young farmer in Walloon Brabant who has been practicing conservation agriculture for years, described his soil as “a big sponge” that can store water and redistribute it during dry periods.

However, experts at the Belgian Climate Centre caution that barriers to transformation remain significant, including global market pressures, regulatory inconsistencies, and lobbying by the agri-food industry. The centre also warns that the potential for soil carbon sequestration should not be overestimated, and must not distract from the urgent need to phase out fossil fuels.

What to Watch For

As harvests conclude in late July, all eyes will be on the Libramont Fair, Belgium’s premier agricultural event, where farmers and policymakers will grapple with the implications of a shifting growing season. With Belgium’s climate projected to warm by an additional 3°C in the coming decades, the early harvests of 2026 may soon become the new normal — a tangible reminder that climate change is not a distant threat but a present reality reshaping the land and the livelihoods that depend on it.