The freezing weather that has hit large portions of Florida's agricultural production through January has prompted state governor Charlie Crist to write to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) secretary Tom Vilsack, requesting that an Emergency Disaster be declared.
Thirteen consecutive days of 'sustained hours' of below-freezing temperatures have resulted in a large amount of damage, according to the letter written by Governor Christ, with preliminary assessments indicating that all of Florida's 67 counties will meet the damage threshold for a USDA Secretarial Emergency Disaster.
In the letter, Mr Crist outlined the fact that many aspects of Florida's agricultural spectrum had been affected by the low temperatures experienced through January.
'No sector of agriculture appears to have been spared,' he wrote. 'Citrus, sugarcane, nursery crops, tropical fish, sweetcorn, tomatoes, snap peas, strawberries, blueberries, peppers, avocados, mangoes and oats are some of the crops that appear to have sustained significant damage.'
Mr Crist added that Florida commissioner Charles Bronson had corroborated the state's agricultural losses with the USDA Farm Service Agency in Florida, with both parties agreeing that the widespread damage necessitated a disaster declaration.
'It is my hope that you will expedite the request so that our producers can begin to access much-needed disaster relief,' he wrote. 'Thank you in advance for your support of Florida's agricultural producers.'
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