PLANT CITY, Fla. — Due to Hurricane Milton, some farms across the state are having to start over when crop cultivation should be well underway.

What You Need To Know

  • Farms are working hard to rebuild after Hurricane Milton

  • Sanchez Farms says the Hurricane is forcing them to rebuild, but they hope to resume planting soon

  • Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson launched a loan program to help farmers who saw damage to their property

“It’s going to take at least a week to fix everything and we’re already halfway through the month of October, but I’m hopeful we can start planting soon,” said Fidel Sanchez, owner of Sanchez Farms in Plant City.

To help, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson launched a loan program for farmers who’ve been impacted.

The loans can be used by eligible Florida farmers, ranchers and growers to restore, repair or replace property, including fences, equipment, greenhouses and other buildings.

The money can also be used to remove vegetative debris and cover the cost of labor.

Meantime, Sanchez has been working nonstop to get his farm back up and running at full capacity.

“Everything was damaged ... and I have to fix all of this first before I plant anything,” he said.

Sanchez adds it’s not just his property that saw damages, but neighboring farmers as well.

They’re coming together to try to salvage as much as they can to start replanting.

“It won’t stay the same, but as long as we rebuild as best as we can, we’ll be able to plant our crops,” said Sanchez.