The South Carolina Department of Agriculture said more than a hundred million dollars in crops were lost due to Hurricane Florence, with potentially more losses expected from Hurricane Michael.
South Carolina farmers are especially feeling the strain of Mother Nature’s damage.
For 31 years, Donnie Shirer has walked and tilled his Sumter fields. His farm consists of hundreds of acres of corn, soybeans and wheat throughout the year.
Shirer is a third generation South Carolina farmer.
His grandfather planted his first crop in the fields in 1910, kept the farm in business during the Great Depression, rebuilt the home after a fire in the early 40s, and passed it along to Shirer’s father, then eventually it became Shirer’s turn.
But since the floods of 2015, Shirer told WLTX the job is getting tougher and tougher.
“We've all been trying to recover from that and we just -- it seems like every time we're about to get back on our feet we get knocked down again and it's usually weather related,” Shirer said next to his fields.
Hurricanes Florence and Michael didn't leave him unscathed.
“I had about ten percent damage to my corn crop, it was laying down on the ground. I had to take some time to cut it, I lost a little bit of corn but really, we dodged a bullet here in Sumter County, we really have,” Shirer told WLTX.
But other areas were not so lucky.
The South Carolina Department of Agriculture estimates that $125 million in crops were lost due to Hurricane Florence, according to Assistant Commissioner Clint Leach.
Leach said most of those losses were in the Upper Pee Dee region consisting of cotton, peanuts, soybeans and other fruits and vegetables. He added that industrial hemp production also took a hit.
Shirer said he’s spent time talking to friends and fellow farmers in other areas who tell him sweet potatoes and peanuts in North Carolina were hit, in South Carolina cotton and peanuts are suffering and in Georgia there are ‘extensive' losses to cotton crops and pecans.
Leach said he’s heard similar things from colleagues at other state agriculture departments.
But what does that mean for you? It could mean a higher grocery bill this fall.
“When you got to get your pecans for your pecan pie for Thanksgiving you're going to see that the prices have spiked pretty good, sweet potatoes for your sweet potato pie, the price of cotton is probably going to go up now because of extensive losses not only in South Carolina but Georgia and also losses in Texas now,” Shirer warned.
Shirer showed soybeans on his farm that were pushed over due to Michael, he told WLTX he hopes they stand back up. But, he’s more concerned about the damp, humid and hot weather both storms left in their wake that could damage more of his soybean crop.
There is no fourth generation to take the reigns from Shirer, he'll be the last family man to till his land.
He says a new generation not interested in farming and tougher circumstances, like the storms, are making him a rare breed in the United States.
But just like his soybeans, he hopes fellow southeast farmers can stand back up after a tough punch from Mother Nature.