In Egypt’s Nile Delta, jasmine farmers who supply luxury perfume brands are now battling extreme heat, shrinking harvests, and poverty, with little help or support.
Egyptian farmer Wael al-Sayed says rising heat has cut his jasmine harvest in half, from 6kg to just 2-3kg daily, as flowers bloom less in hotter summers.
Jasmine farming in Shubra Balula has supported families for generations but rising heat and new pests now threaten this rural tradition.
Families pick jasmine at night when its scent is strongest. With lower yields, many now work longer hours or leave farming altogether.
Children like Sayed’s 9 and 10-year-olds are joining the night harvest before school, as families struggle to cope with shrinking income.
Egypt produces nearly 50% of the world’s jasmine concrete, used in luxury perfumes, but production has dropped from 11 to 6.5 tonnes since the 1970s.
Long-time picker Ali Emara, 78, says today’s heat is far worse than before, hurting the flowers and the oil’s rich scent that perfumes rely on.
Climate expert Karim Elgendy says high heat weakens jasmine oil, lowers yields, and invites stress that reduces the plant’s flowering.
Egypt’s temperatures have risen 0.38°C per decade since 2000, faster than the global average, according to the International Energy Agency.
Despite global perfume brands charging up to $6,000/kg for jasmine oil, local pickers like Sayed earn just $2/kg, barely enough to survive.
In June, farmers staged a rare strike asking for 150 pounds per kilo, but processors only raised it by 10, leaving families in worsening poverty.
“Villages like this may not survive,” warns Elgendy, as climate change and unfair pay leave jasmine farmers unsupported and facing an uncertain future.
Read more at Phys.org. Egyptian farmers behind world's perfumes face climate fight alone