The four counties in the Rio Grande Valley have been approved for federal agricultural assistance in the wake of the massive crop losses caused by last month’s damaging winter storm. A federal USDA disaster designation has been issued for Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willacy counties. The designation makes ag producers in those four counties as well as in contiguous counties eligible for USDA emergency loans. Preliminary estimates are that the deep freeze destroyed nearly all of the Valley orange crop and at least 50 percent of this year’s grapefruit as well as next year’s crop which was just blooming. A wide variety of vegetables in the fields were also a near total loss. Source - https://www.kurv.com