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EASTERN PECAN GROWERS CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH DAMAGE

Pecan growers in the Eastern United States continue to deal with damaged pecans due to the affects tropical storm Irma. As the harvest season continues along in the Southeast, growers in Georgia and Alabama continue to deal with the effects of damaged nuts left behind by tropical storm Irma. Just over 2 months ago tropical storm Irma tore through the largest pecan producing region in the US causing significant damage to the 2017 pecan crop just before harvest was set to begin. The damage done to the orchards caused major delays in harvest by knocking down trees and limbs on a large scale. But the high winds of the storm also knocked pecans out of the trees, some that were ready and many that were not quite ready for harvest. For the pecans that were ready to be harvested, they were then forced to lay on the wet ground until the pecan farmers could get through the orchard cleaning up all the debris. For the pecans that were not ready, they are now being harvested with the quality pecans not damaged by the storm. Pecan growers in Alabama, Georgia, and North Florida are still dealing with the effects of the storm in the cleaning plants. In order to get the pecans cleaned properly, growers have had to work much harder to remove damaged pecans from the quality pecans. We reported on the effects this was having on the B-Grade last month. Even though the storm is long gone, the damage left behind is still being dealt with by most growers in the Southeastern pecan producing region.