Which Florida county had the most agriculture damage from Hurricane Ian? Manatee tops list
Hurricane Ian caused $126.4 million in damage to Manatee County agriculture, the most sustained in any Florida county.
The findings, released Thursday by the University of Florida, are consistent with the assessment by Bradenton area farmers who called Ian the most damaging storm they could remember.
Other Florida counties also suffered significant damage from Ian:
▪ Hillsborough: $104.4 million
▪ Palm Beach: $88.8 million
▪ Hardee: $72.5 million
▪ Hendry: $72.0 million
The latest damage estimate of $1.03 billion is for the total value of seasonal crops, livestock, nursery and aquaculture products that will not be harvested or marketed as a result the Category 4 storm.
Ian made landfall on an island 20 miles west of Fort Myers on Sept. 28, and brought damaging winds and flooding to millions of acres of agricultural lands as it swept across Florida.
The report follows up on a preliminary assessment released Oct. 18, 2022, that estimated between $787 million and $1.56 billion in losses.
The UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program (EIAP) published its detailed report on Thursday.
Hardest hit sectors included:
▪ Citrus: $247.1 million
▪ Vegetables and melons: $204.6 million
▪ Greenhouse and nursery: $195.4 million
▪ Non-citrus fruit: $137.7 million
▪ Field and row crops: $130.2 million
▪ Livestock and animal products: $119.8 million
“If a grower was expecting to harvest $10 million in crops this year and the storm destroyed $6 million worth, we report a $6 million loss. That farmer might recoup some of that through insurance, but we don’t have a good way of accounting for that in our estimates,” Christa Court, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, said in a press release.
A major blow
Last month, Jerry Dakin told the Bradenton Herald that Hurricane Ian inflicted more damage on Dakin Dairy Farms than any other storm in history.
Dakin estimated the damage to the Myakka City dairy at $3 million, plus 360 cows lost during the storm and said that it will take years to recover.
Immediately after Ian passed through Manatee County, Gary Reeder, president of the Manatee County Farm Bureau, said tomato, watermelon and citrus crops as well as Dakin Dairy, took a big hit.
Bob Spencer, president of West Coast Tomato in Palmetto, said in October that he expected his crop would be down 50%.
Dennis Cathcart, owner of Tropiflora, 3530 Tallevast Road, and Ralph Garrison, owner of Suncoast Nursery, 6012 18th Ave. E., said the damage from Ian is the worst they have seen.
Jim Strickland, past president of the Florida Cattlemen’s Association, owner of Strickland Ranch and manager of Blackbeard’s Ranch, said in October that Ian wrecked many fences.
“My crew has been working around the clock,” mending fences, he said. “It’s been hard work, it’s been wet. If I told you we had 1,000 trees on fences, I would not be lying.
“We have all the chain saws and swamp buggies and are ready to go,” he said, adding that his biggest worry is that cattle might wander onto roads, posing a danger to drivers.
This story was originally published February 9, 2023 at 12:54 PM.
