As reported in nytimes.com Italian growers of olive trees in the southern provinces are confronting one of the worst threats to their livelihood: a bacterial infection that is destroying the olive trees. In Italy, olive oil is the staple of the diet; it is used in all manner of cooking, from Sicily to Balzano in the north.
This infection comes on the heels of last year's infestation of fruit flies that destroyed the olives across a wide swath of orchards, especially in Toscana, in central Italy. At a time when the economy in Italy is sputtering, this agricultural setback will only add to the severe slowdown in the country's economy. No matter the crop insurance, no matter the precautions, when the trees die, it's over. Yes, they can replant, but the crops will not arrive for 4-5 years. But, it's not as bad as conditions in Nepal, where another earthquake has hit the area at 7.3 magnitude.
It's been a rough year, and in Liberia, they're celebrating the end of the ebola outbreak.
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