Cyclone Gabrielle: Federated Farmers estimates cost to farmers could top $1 billion

Federated Farmers says the cost of Cyclone Gabrielle could be over $1 billion for farmers. Photo / Warren Buckland

Cyclone Gabrielle is shaping up to be New Zealand’s most expensive weather event in terms of its spread and scale, Federated Farmers chief executive Terry Copeland says.

“The fact that Cyclone Gabrielle has claimed at least 11 lives is devastating, but quite honestly, we’re very fortunate the toll isn’t a lot higher,” Copeland said.

The Federated Farmers policy team estimated total on-farm costs, including income disruption, infrastructure repair and crop or orchard restoration bills for all affected farmers and growers could top $1 billion.

That didn’t include costs to the nation in terms of public infrastructure, food shortages and inflation.

As well as this, stock losses will be in the many, many thousands of animals.

“Honestly, the cost is still being counted,” Copeland said.

“There will still be farms on the East Cape, for example, who haven’t been able to get out to the back of their properties to do an assessment because of destroyed access.”

Severe flooding in 2004 provided some sort of benchmark - in 2004 dollars, Copeland said.

In that event, there were 1014 farms flood-damaged; 5000 sheep and up to 1000 dairy cattle lost; 20,000 hectares of farmland under water; $5.8 million in losses from dumped milk (Fonterra alone); $24m in damage to rivers; an estimated $159m-$189m damage to farms and another $200m in uninsured damage; and $77m in damage to road and bridges.

“Cyclone Gabrielle’s impacts are a quantum bigger,” Copeland said.

It wreaked havoc over a wider area (nine provinces versus five) and damage to rural infrastructure seems much more severe.

Listen to Jamie Mackay interview Federated Farmers chief executive Terry Copeland on The Country below:

Horticulture businesses in particular have suffered significantly higher damage in the recent event.

In Tairāwhiti, Federated Farmers Gisborne-Wairoa acting president Charlie Reynolds said restoring fencelines - critical to livestock feed management - costs around $25,000 per kilometre, and there were plenty of farms in the region with 10 kilometres or more of fenceline slumped or washed away.

An apple orchard is roughly valued at about $100,000 per hectare (excluding land value).

Some 2100ha of orchards in Hawke’s Bay alone have been destroyed or severely damaged.

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Rural insurance specialist FMG is already handling more than 3000 claims from Cyclone Gabrielle.

Copeland recently saw for himself the flooding, silt and slip damage in rural areas of Hawke’s Bay.

“There are areas there that look like a lunar landscape - just everything wiped out. There are farmers and growers whose livelihoods, and everything they own, have been stamped out overnight.”

The Government has recently stepped up with $26m of direct support to farmers and growers, in addition to the $25m announced last month.

While it was a “strong response, and very welcome”, Copeland said more was needed.

“I think everyone - including the Government - knows it’s only a step along the long path to recovery.”

The money involved, the stress on farming families and the hit on production and incomes in rural areas were all “horrendous,” Copeland said.

“Recovery is going to be a very long haul and - quite rightly - serious questions are being asked about where, and how, to rebuild roads, bridges, rail, electricity substations and other infrastructure.”