Cyclone Debbie could cost Australians most at the supermarket

It's very likely the effects of Cyclone Debbie will be felt most at the supermarket.

Australians could be hit with higher prices for fresh food like tomatoes and bananas because of ruined crops and flood damage.

The north Queensland region is known as Australia's winter food bowl.

Sugar cane crops are barely holding on from Ayr in the north, to 300 kilometres south in Mackay.

They're just a few weeks away from being harvested, unless Cyclone Debbie gets in first, which would be devastating for the region.

National Farmers' Federation President Fiona Simson said: "It could well be well over a billion dollars worth of damage".

That includes the impact on food and vegetable crops, particularly in Bowen.

Food wholesaler Shaun McInerney said during winter time Bowen feeds Australia.

"There's tomatoes, capsicums, chillies, eggplant, 36 beans, corn, rock melon, honey dew.

Thankfully, most still haven't been planted, or have only just gone in the ground.

Some growers moving their seedlings under cover for protection.

While they desperately need drenching rains, flooding is a major concern.

"They'll have to wait for the water to subside and the ground to be relatively firm to get their machinery in and their tractors in to start their planting schedule," Mr McInerney said.

Any delay in planting will almost certainly affect supply - right around Australia.
We're being told to expect shortages for some fruits and vegetables that could last up to a month.

And that means higher prices.

Homebush grocer David Tobey said prices will "probably go up to $9, $10 a kilo for good quality tomatoes".

The cost of bananas could rise too not because of damage to crops like we saw during Cyclone Yasi.

But damage to roads potentially cutting off plantations further north.