It’s now official that the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) will have a new agency for consumer marketing, media relations and issues management starting July 1. The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC), the FDOC’s governing board, approved contracts with Padilla Speer Beardsley, Inc. on May 9. The new contracts are for two years with three optional one-year renewals.
Padilla Speer Beardsley, Inc. will replace current FDOC agency Edible Inc. Edible has been the FDOC’s consumer marketing agency for 10 years and more recently became the FDOC’s agency for media relations and issues management.
The FCC also heard updates from the FDOC staff regarding plans for the 2024–25 FDOC budget, which will not be approved until June. A preliminary budget has been suggested by the FDOC, but will be altered due to Florida citrus crop forecast reductions in April and May. The FDOC budget is funded in large part by grower assessments on each box of fruit sold into commercial channels.
So far, the FDOC staff has recommended that grower assessment rates stay the same as in the 2023–24 season. Those per-box rates are 12 cents for processed oranges, 5 cents for fresh oranges, 7 cents for grapefruit and 7 cents for all specialty fruit.
Christine Marion, FDOC executive director of administration and finance, presented fiscal year 2024–25 revenue sources. “From general revenue, we are receiving $9 million in marketing funding. For research $2.65 million, and for the PALM (Planning, Accounting, and Ledger Management) project $525,000. USDA MAP (Market Access program) funding is $3.595 million, and the remainder of the budget will be covered with the citrus advertising trust fund of $5.4 million,” she said.
Marion said the budget currently contains a $202,000 increase in salary and benefits for FDOC employees. This is primarily based on the legislative salary increase of 3% and health and other benefit cost increases.
Source: FDOC
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