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Large percentage of Johnson corn, potato crops damaged by golf ball-sized hail

Johnson Taber corn and potatoes reporting hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage from Saturday’s (June 13) thunderstorm.

The crop near Barnwell was hit with plenty of rain and up to golf ball-sized hail. Farm Manager, James Johnson, says about 40% of their corn was damaged and about 30% of their potatoes.

He tells our radio station it’s too early to say at this point if there will be less corn to sell this year. “Our early stuff was fine, it wasn’t touched. So, we’ll probably start [selling] end of July, first part of August kind of like we normally do. But, there’s a good chance that we’re going to have some gaps. We won’t have quite a steady supply as we normally do.”

Johnson notes that the potatoes should bounce back from the storm, and hopes that the loss in the corn supply will be minimal.

This is the second season in a row that the Johnson Farm crop has been damaged by inclement weather. It endured large hail and high wind during a storm last August that damaged a majority of its crops, cutting that selling season extremely short.

Sam Borsato
Sam Borsato
I started my radio career in 2015, shortly after graduating from Lethbridge College. I have a very strong passion for local news. Proudly born in 1994, I grew up most of my life in Sylvan Lake, AB and I've lived in the Lethbridge since 2012. I'm a below average golfer on a good day, I take as many hiking trips to Waterton as possible in the summer and I love my two cats, Outlaw and Jynx, and my dog, Maverick, more than most people I know. I look forward to providing accurate, timely news coverage in southern Alberta for plenty of years to come!
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