Vermont Agency of Agriculture released a preliminary assessment of the damage

On Monday, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture released a preliminary assessment of the damage done to Vermont’s farm and forest industries during last month’s flooding. Northeast Kingdom farmers reportedly sustained well over $1 million in damages. The data is from a survey developed by the Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets,  about the impact of the flooding between July 7 and 18. According to data collected over the first 15 days the survey was open, there was nearly $12.3 million reported from 200 respondents thus far, impacting over 18,000 acres. The hardest hit counties, according to this interim survey data, were Bennington and Addison, each with just over $2 million in damages reported thus far. According to respondents, the damage also accounts for a loss of roughly 30% of annual income. The survey notes that 69% of respondents do not carry crop insurance. The survey will remain open through Aug. 28, with Agriculture officials asking anyone that raises animals or grows feed or crops to complete the survey, which takes just a few minutes to complete. Go to agriculture.vermont.gov.