Hurricane Michael, which swept through Florida and Georgia, took a toll of more than two million chickens.
Hurricane Florence, which came from the other direction earlier, killed more than 3.1 million chickens and more than 5,500 hogs in North Carolina.
The Georgia Department of Agriculture reported that at least 90 chicken barns were destroyed or significantly damaged and more than two million chickens were lost.
Farms, dairies and processing plants in 10 Georgia counties were impacted by Michael, which made landfall in the Florida Panhandle as a Category 4 storm and moved north and east last week.
Poultry contributes $23 billion toward Georgia’s annual economy, the agency says.
Cotton crops were wiped out in large areas of Alabama and Georgia.
Alabama lost 2,000 pullets and 31,000 broilers to Michael, with three broiler houses completely destroyed and between 50 and 75 chicken houses experiencing slight to moderate damage.
The state’s poultry industry contributes $15 billion in revenue annually and represents 65.5 percent of Alabama’s annual farming revenue, the state’s poultry association said.
North Carolina lawmakers have set aside $794 million in additional Hurricane Florence relief funding, bringing the total disaster recovery commitments to $850 million.
South and North Carolina and Virginia agricultural agencies also have not yet released information on Hurricane Michael’s impact on poultry operations.
