With agricultural losses from Hurricane Irma expected to run into billions of dollars, the head of the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association (FFVA) says the industry will lobby for federal relief, reports The Packer. “Hurricane Irma left Sunshine State citrus groves with dropped fruit, standing water and dashed hopes,” said the trade publication, while tomato, strawberry and vegetable growers “came through the storm in comparatively better shape.”
In the Indian River region, there were preliminary estimates of a 50 percent loss of the citrus crop. The Indian River citrus district runs 200 miles along the Atlantic coast, from Daytona Beach to West Palm Beach, in central Florida. Citrus in southwestern Florida also was hit hard, said The Packer. Citrus groves in the Indian River district were flooded with up to 18 inches of water, which put tree roots under stress. All the same, the executive director of the Indian River Citrus League “insisted that growers will harvest, market and export substantial volume of fresh grapefruit this season. The region exports four out of every five boxes of fresh grapefruit.”
Strawberry growers in west-central Florida are expected to recover from Irma in time for their normal marketing window of November through March, a growers association official told The Packer: “Our season is going to be fine – thank God, we had not planted yet.” The hurricane will force replanting of vegetable crops in the Immokalee region, which may mean that almost all of the produce will be harvested in January instead of the usual mid- to late-November harvest. But for many vegetable growers, Irma arrived before planting time. “We’re going to be fully in business, if a little late, but there’s no doubt we will be in full volume by the end of the year,” said FFVA president Mike Stuart.
The Palm Beach Post said Florida growers found “oranges ripped from trees, shade houses gone, vegetable beds ruined, sugarcane flattened and power poles and lines down. Statewide, the total agricultural cost of the storm will be in the billions, informal estimates suggest, the Florida Farm Bureau Federation said Thursday. Irma’s winds and rains caused widespread destruction of crops, buildings, fencing and other property. The most severe damage was in Southwest Florida.”