Hurricane Milton took a big toll on Florida farmers. As they work to salvage what they can, damage estimates are starting to trickle in.
A Farm Bureau Economist shares the findings.
“What we found was that vegetable production is the largest agricultural sector in those counties impacted by Hurricane Milton, with a total value exceeding $1.6 billion produced in those counties. FDA requires and restricts any sales of edible portions of crops that have been exposed to flooding, so any vegetables that were flooded have been lost. The fruit and tree nuts sector, where the next largest sector, $1.3 billion in ag sales in those affected counties are produced, such as the state’s citrus industry.”
Florida’s nearly half-billion-dollar strawberry industry took a major hit. Munch says 99 percent of their acreage was in the direct path of Hurricane Milton.
