Frost protection refers to the methods used to shield crops from damaging sub-zero temperatures, including overhead irrigation, wind machines and frost blankets, and is critical for early-flowering fruit and berry crops where a single event can eliminate a season’s yield.
In trade practice
Overhead irrigation is widely used in Ukrainian berry production; water releases latent heat as it freezes, holding plant tissue just above the damage threshold. Wind machines and portable heaters are deployed in orchards during forecast frost events. Crop insurance assessors and buyers’ agronomists may review frost-protection records when evaluating supply risk for a given growing region. Failure to act on frost warnings is a common cause of partial crop loss that disrupts contracted volumes.
In a specification
Supply contracts for fresh or frozen fruit may include a force majeure clause referencing documented frost events, requiring the supplier to notify the buyer within a defined period of any yield impact.