October 11, 2024
www.gfb.org
Vol. 6 No. 19
HELENE WREAKS HAVOC ON GEORGIA CROPS & TIMBER By Jay Stone and Jennifer Whittaker The heavy rains and high winds of Hurricane Helene that pummeled Georgia on Sept. 26 into the morning of Sept. 27, caused an estimated $6.46 billion in agricultural and forestry losses across Southeast Georgia in a stretch from Valdosta to Augusta and over to the coast, according to a preliminary study released by the University of Georgia. Final damage loss amounts are expected to rise after row crop and pecan farmers harvest what remains of their crops. State officials say this estimate should be interpreted as preliminary, as it will take months to understand the full scope of Helene’s damage. The storm left many of the state’s farmers improvising to run their livestock and poultry operations and many are still living without electricity. All of Georgia’s major commodities took horrific hits. Hurricane Helene is the third named storm to hit Georgia in the past 13 months – Hurricane Idalia Aug. 2023 and Tropical Storm Debby Aug. 2024 and it could not have come at a worse time for Georgia farmers and producers who were already facing economic hardship caused by inflation, high input costs, and depressed commodity prices. Prior to Helene, U.S. Net Farm Income was projected to drop by $6.5 billion in 2024, following a decline of $35.6 billion in 2023. On Thursday, Oct. 10, Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper were joined by members of Georgia’s Congressional delegation and state legislators at a press conference on the farm of brothers Terry and Ronnie Phillips in Treutlen County to discuss the damage done to Georgia’s agriculture and forestry sectors which contribute more than $83 billion to our state’s economy on an annual basis and employing more than 320,000 Georgians according to the latest UGA Ag Snapshots report. "The damage that you see around you here - twisted cotton, broken and twisted pine trees - it's representative of what we've seen from Valdosta to Augusta, the entire impact zone of Hurricane Helene. It is catastrophic, widespread damage that has impacted every rural community and farm in the storm's path. Before Hurricane Helene, we had an ag economy that was in dire straits due to low [commodity] prices and high production costs. Our farmers need help right now to help them -continued on next page