Northland farmers brace for devastation as they count the cost of Cyclone Jasper

The ex-tropical storm has caused widespread destruction and grief for farmers and growers living in far north Queensland, with producer losing a third of his entire plantation.

Thousands of banana trees have been destroyed by Cyclone Jasper at Ausgrow's banana farm near Innisfail.

Some banana crops along the far north Queensland coast were destroyed after gale-force winds from Ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper toppled trees and plants, with one farmer losing more than a third of his farm.

Growers around Lakeland, Fishery Falls and Innisfail have reported a devastating loss of crop after winds of more than 120km/h and heavy rain from the category two storm lashed the coast on Wednesday.

Australian Banana Growers Council (ABGC) chair Leon Collins said the banana industry “dodged a bullet”, despite it being too early to count the full cost of Jasper.

Thousands of banana trees have been destroyed by Cyclone Jasper at Ausgrow's banana farm near Innisfail. (Supplied: Antony Joseph)

“The banana industry has been relatively lucky so far but some individual growers will be hit hard, it is too soon to tell but I’m glad the storm didn’t reach category Three,” ABGC chair Leon Collins said.

“Banana prices are not expected to be affected so we dodged a bullet.”

South of Cairns, one banana grower has been left with a massive loss of more than $250,000 after crops were pounded by the relentless winds on Wednesday afternoon.

Ausgrow finance manager Antony Joseph told The Australian more than a third of his 48-hectare banana farm in Eubenangee was destroyed.

“Out of 48 hectares, roughly 35 per cent has been completely wiped out, that’s around 25,000 banana trees,” he said.

“The damage is about $300,000 and we are uninsured for crop damage, I’m not sure if we will receive any help from the state government.”

“Cleaning up will be difficult because the cost of labour and diesel has gone up while many, many trees are shredded to pieces.” Antony Joseph said.

Blueberries, macadamias, avocados, bananas and oranges are just a few of the crops affected across FNQ, with some farmers fearful they will not receive any compensation from the local government.

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) told The Australian they were bracing for an influx of claims once the weather improves in coming days.

“At this stage claim numbers are low and we do not anticipate a large claim volume event. However, this may be subject to change as conditions begin to improve in the coming days and weeks,” a spokesman for ICA said.

“Farmers without insurance are encouraged to listen out for any announcements made by the Queensland Government.”

Thousands of banana trees have been destroyed by Cyclone Jasper at Ausgrow's banana farm near Innisfail. (Supplied: Antony Joseph)

But the president of FNQ Growers Joe Moro said farmers need better insurance for crops during natural disasters.

“Crop insurance is way too expensive so not many farmers pay for it, they rely heavily on cash funds to operate,” Joe Moro said

“It’s up to the state and federal governments to help affected producers and I think that the crop insurance scheme is outdated and needs to be revisited.”

State Minister for Agricultural Industry Development Mark Furner said damage assessments for government financial assistance would take place once conditions had settled.

Federal Coalition MP for Mareeba Warren Entsch said the deluge of water could be of benefit to some growers however.

“We’ve gone through a very dry period and so there’s quite a lot of benefit that will come from this rain.”

A spokesman for the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries said damage to crops in FNQ was kept minimal.

“Producers who have suffered damage are urged to complete the online Disaster Impact Survey to report damage from the cyclone,” the spokesman said.