Georgia's Department of Agriculture is coordinating efforts to assist recovery in Southwest and Central Georgia, areas most affected by Hurricane Michael.
Commissioner Gary W. Black, in a news release Thursday, said crops, animals and infrastructure have all taken a substantial loss because of the storm.
Black says poultry contributes $23.3 billion to Georgia's economy and has reported the most widespread power outages and loss. He says 84 chicken houses, estimated to have held more than 2 million chickens, were destroyed. The farms, dairies and processing plants impacted were in Appling, Colquitt, Coffee, Decatur, Evans, Houston, Mitchell, Randolph, Lee and Wilcox counties.
Damaging winds also drove much of the cotton crop to the ground for a total loss or tangled it making it harder to extract clean lint during the ginning process. Assessments for peanuts and pecans are ongoing.
