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Hurricane Michael caused $158 million in damage to Florida crops

Renee and Clayton Moss in a ruined field on their cotton farm near Camilla, Ga., on Oct. 18, 2018. The 100-mile-per-hour winds of Hurricane Michael destroyed a robust cotton crop at the precise moment when the bolls were fattest, fluffiest and set to be harvested. (Kevin D. Liles/The New York Times) Renee and Clayton Moss in a ruined field on their cotton farm near Camilla, Ga., on Oct. 18, 2018. The 100-mile-per-hour winds of Hurricane Michael destroyed a robust cotton crop at the precise moment when the bolls were fattest, fluffiest and set to be harvested. (Kevin D. Liles/The New York Times)

By Associated Press October 26, 2018 1 min read

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – A new study says Florida crops suffered $158 million in damages from Hurricane Michael.

The report released Friday by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences says that almost all of the state’s cotton crop was wiped out.

Those losses total around $51 million.

Florida’s greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production suffered $39 million in losses and the state’s peanut crop took a hit of $22 million in losses.

Damage to the area’s livestock was around $23 million.

Florida lost $9 million in vegetables and melons, $4 million in fruits and $3 million in tree nuts, including pecans.

Separately, the Florida Forest Service estimates that Florida lost almost $1.3 billion in timber that would have been harvested over several years.