On 26 February, a storm caused severe damage to banana cultivation in the north of Santa Catarina. According to a survey by Epagri, the main municipalities affected were Luiz Alves, Massaranduba and São João do Itaperiú, which together add up to more than R$ 25 million in losses with the crop.
Banana plantations were impacted most significantly. Jorge Marangoni, from Febanana (Federation of Associations and Cooperatives of Banana Producers of Santa Catarina), reported that the number of plants reaches 400,000 damaged trees in the region. Public policies have been employed in order to assure impacted producers, such as through the expansion of financing and restoration programs without the occurrence of interest.
Source: abrafrutas.org