Dive Brief:
- Farmers are reporting significant damage to cotton and pecan crops from Hurricane Helene, which caused deadly flooding and widespread infrastructure damage after tearing through the U.S. Southeast over the weekend.
- “Every commodity in the state has been damaged by the storm,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a press conference Saturday, adding that at least 107 poultry facilities were “damaged or totally destroyed by the storm.”
- Cotton farmers in Georgia are reporting yield losses ranging from 35% to “a total loss,” according to the state’s cotton commission. Widespread power outages have also affected dairies and food processing facilities, with Wayne-Sanderson Farms halting production on Monday at a plant in Moultrie, Georgia.
Dive Insight:
Days after Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 storm, farm communities in Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas are facing devastating losses with some towns nearly submerged by unprecedented rainfall and flooding.
“Even as the rain and the winds have subsided, the challenge for people there increases,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said in a press conference. “People are desperate for help.”
No words to describe how much our hearts are with our folks in East TN reeling from the impact of Hurricane Helene. We are continuing to pray for the days and weeks ahead.
For flood related resources, we encourage you to visit @utextension ➡️ https://t.co/VTWDb7zh9J pic.twitter.com/LJufVWtPk9
— Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation (@TNFarmBureau) September 29, 2024
More than 100 people across several U.S. states have died from the storm, a toll that is likely to rise as rescue operations continue to unfold. Helene’s wrath has also destroyed businesses and farms, and is expected to upend cotton, peanut and pecan crops just as harvests get underway.
“Losses will extend well beyond the farm, as cotton gins, other agribusinesses, and rural communities will feel the ripples of Hurricane Helene’s aftermath for years to come,” the Georgia Cotton Commission said on Facebook.
Economic impact to cotton is expected to “be in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” according to the trade association. Kemp said monetary damages across agriculture are likely to be higher than 2018’s Hurricane Michael, which led to more than $2 billion in losses.
Farmers shared pictures on social media of uprooted pecan trees, swamped farm fields and downed poultry houses. Producers are encouraged to use the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s disaster tool to assess assistance and loan options.
Despite the storm’s devastation, farmers will likely be quick to turn their attention to cleaning up in order to salvage what’s left of the harvest. State officials are urging farmers, however, to first thoroughly document the damage.
“Document, document, document,” Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper said at a press conference. “We need as much information as possible to ensure that we can get the needed resources and the needed help deployed as quickly as possible.”