Administrative Publication No. (AP-114) 35 pp
Puerto Rico’s Agricultural Economy in the Aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria: A Brief Overview
This study provides a broad overview of Puerto Rico’s agricultural sector, with an emphasis on identifying changes between 2012 and 2018. In 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused severe damage, and hurricane losses particularly affected smaller farms with sales under $20,000 per year. The number of farms smaller than 10 acres decreased by more than 50 percent, and the number of farms with 10–49 acres fell by almost one-third. Crop sales in Puerto Rico decreased by $82 million from 2012 to 2018, with the most notable decreases for plantains (-$54 million), coffee (-$30 million), vegetables and melons (-$23 million), and fruits and coconuts (-$19 million).
Keywords: Puerto Rico, farm income, agricultural trade, trade, export, import, coffee, dairy, risk management, recovery, hurricane
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