Florida Agricultural Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced the state's agricultural sector suffered more than $3 billion in estimated losses following two freezes around New Year's Eve and in January into February, according to a recent release.
The full report from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, the Florida Census of Agriculture, USDA Market News, UF-IFAS Preliminary Freeze Event Assessment, and others can be found here.
Winter Storm Ezra (Dec. 30 to Jan. 1) and Gianna (Jan. 26 to Feb. 4) brought historically cold temperatures to much of Florida, even as far south as Miami.
“Our preliminary estimate of over $3 billion in agricultural losses makes clear what we already knew: This was one of the most damaging freeze events for Florida agriculture in history. It is also clear that our state's farmers, ranchers, and growers – who we rely on daily to feed and nourish our communities – need timely and substantial support,” Simpson said in a release.
“I want to thank President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins for their unprecedented support for our food producers, especially during times of crisis like this. They know that a strong domestic food supply is critical to our nation’s security, and Florida’s farmers feed America, especially during the winter," Simpson added. "Working hand in hand with producer groups and our congressional delegation, we stand ready to accept and quickly administer federal block grant funding to support our impacted producers to recover, to replant, and to keep our nation fed.”
According to the release, the following products/industries were affected.
- Tomatoes: $164,273,849
- Strawberries: $306,965,897
- Watermelons $65,437,343
- Sweet Corn: $255,363,251
- Sugarcane: $1,152,122,146
- Bell Peppers: $108,380,389
- Potatoes: $79,065,000
- Cabbage: $21,800,280
- Squash: $24,522,275
- Blueberries: $78,512,400
- Greenhouse and Nursery: $240,000,000
- Citrus: $674,660,336
Florida's cold snap also affected the green iguana population, although that was much more welcomed. The green iguana is invasive to Florida, meaning they don't belong in its environment, and the cold temperatures left as many as 5,000 of the cold-blooded reptiles immobilized and easy to capture.
