Final answer:
Before the Civil War, Georgia was heavily focused on cotton production, which was the South's major commercial crop due to the efficiency brought by the invention of the cotton gin. The war disrupted the cotton trade, leading to economic difficulties. During the war, Georgia's agricultural efforts shifted to growing food crops to support the Confederacy.
Step-by-step explanation:
Before the war, Georgia's economy was primarily focused on cotton production. During the antebellum era, cotton emerged as the South's major commercial crop, especially after the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793. This device revolutionized the production of cotton by separating the seeds from the raw cotton rapidly, making its cultivation extremely profitable for plantations in the South, including Georgia. Cotton eclipsed other crops such as tobacco, rice, and sugar in economic importance.
The cotton economy suffered greatly during the Civil War as Southern cotton planters could not sell their cotton to the North or overseas, greatly affecting their revenues. After the war, even the revitalization of the cotton industry was challenging due to a fall in prices and damaged relationships with international buyers. Additionally, the Confederate government's focus during the war was on producing and acquiring food to support the military effort, which shifted agricultural production away from cash crops.