We can't do it the way our fathers did Farmers struggle with climate crisis

I'm not ready to change jobs," says Stellios Boutaris, a wine producer with vineyards in Naoussa and Amyndeon in northern Greece, as well as on the island of Santorini. But, he adds, "we cannot do it the way our fathers did."

- Sarah Butler

Boutaris is determined to keep producing in the region and keep the family business going as the climate crisis puts pressure on producers across the Mediterranean.

Boutaris, who heads the Kir-Yianni wine producers' group, is one of thousands of farmers in the south of Europe battling to continue producing on the lands their ancestors have farmed for decades, or even centuries, as increasingly extreme weather, such as this summer's wildfires, rage across Spain, France and Greece.

Their struggles mean the price of wine, olives, citrus fruits and vegetables are expected to continue to rise, as droughts, flash floods and high temperatures affect traditional crops in the Mediterranean.

Boutaris is employing new tactics, including installing irrigation and water storage and planting more vegetation among the vines to help the land hold more water and keep temperatures down. He is also buying higher land and seeking out different varieties of grapes which are more resilient to extreme weather.

He has just invested €250,000 (£216,000) in irrigation and now plans to spend a further €200,000 on a project for 40 hectares of vineyards in Santorini.

Producers across Europe will be forced to pass on such extra costs to consumers in the form of higher prices, he says. "Cheap wine is not going to be easy to find. It used to be that the south of France, Spain and Greece produced cheap wine of Europe. Now it is going to be very difficult to compete on price," he says.

Shoppers are already feeling the effects, as droughts in Spain, Italy and Portugal, where the UK sources much of its fresh fruit and vegetables during autumn and winter, push up prices this summer, when they would usually fall.

Even farmers in parts of the UK have been hit by long dry spells affecting production of cereals, potatoes, carrots and broccoli.