Lyng Inspects Drought Areas; Higher Food Prices Indicated

Agriculture Secretary Richard E. Lyng flew to Georgia on Friday to inspect damage from a $1.12-billion drought that has nearly wiped out the South’s soybean, corn and hay crops and is threatening cattle with starvation.

Scattered rain fell Friday across the South, easing the sweltering summer heat and drought, but market officials said drought damage to date could mean higher food prices across the country, with increases already shown in the cost of poultry and produce.

Lyng addressed farmers at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and planned to tour four south Georgia farms with Sen. Mack Mattingly (R-Ga.) before returning to Washington.

No Answers Offered

He said President Reagan had ordered him to do something--and fast--to alleviate the misery of the farmers, but he offered no new ideas and no answers on what action the government will take.

“We’re trying to be responsive, trying to do the best we can,” Lyng said. “The President has asked me to implement as many policies to help these people as we can. This will be done--it will be done over a period of days, not weeks and months.”

But Lyng said there was no point in offering low-interest loans to farmers who are already deeply in debt. He urged growers to invest in crop insurance and to hold on to whatever hope they can muster.

As a stopgap measure, Air Force transport planes began late last week to ferry hay from the North and Midwest to feed livestock in the parched Southeast.

Early Slaughter

The hot, dry weather has forced farmers to slaughter starving livestock early and has killed more than a million chickens. That has affected food prices, experts said.

“The consumer doesn’t realize what’s going on; they think we’re just raising prices,” said Jim Hanson, meat buyer for Cub Foods, a chain of groceries in the Minneapolis area. “Our costs are up 25 to 30%. Before the drought, chicken was 58 cents a pound. Now, it’s 78 cents a pound.”

Egg prices also are up. The wholesale price Tuesday for a dozen eggs in Georgia was 72 cents to 74 cents, up 10 cents from July 1, the Agriculture Department said.