By Peter Chaires
New Varieties Development & Management Corp. (NVDMC) board members recently gathered with friends and industry colleagues at Golden Ridge Groves to honor Frank M. Hunt’s 18-year tenure as NVDMC chairman of the board. Frank stepped forward in 2005, at the inception of the organization, and remained at the helm for all but two years of the next two decades. Paul Koukos of Wheeler Farms recently succeeded Hunt as chairman.
Frank brought a unique set of skills to this position and ably guided the organization through uncharted waters. NVDMC grew to provide a combination of services never or rarely offered by a private not-for-profit. During his tenure, what began as a purely fresh fruit effort driven by packinghouses to address varietal obsolescence grew into an innovative organizational concept. NVDMC supported varietal development projects with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service, as well as post-harvest support, field trials, demonstrations, international exploration, field days, variety displays and proprietary licensing services for growers and nurseries. NVDMC has worked closely with the USDA Office of Technology Transfer and the Florida Foundation Seed Producers Inc.
NVDMC has represented the interests of Florida citrus growers by facilitating the licensing of citrus varieties for evaluation and commercialization in key global markets. Through this process, variety adoption can be promoted in a way that is complementary and respectful of the interests of Florida and domestic growing communities. Most recently, as the Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) has exercised its first right of refusal to the rights of varieties developed with some level of state funding, NVDMC has been selected to manage the licensing process.
NVDMC was initially funded through a self-assessment at the packinghouse level. After the FCC recognized the importance of NVDMC’s mission, the board of directors was expanded to include all interested segments of the industry. Over the last 21 years, board seats have been filled at various times by representatives of Florida Citrus Packers, Florida Citrus Mutual, Indian River Citrus League, Florida Citrus Production Managers, Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association’s Citrus Nursery Division, Gulf Citrus Growers Association, the Budwood Technical Advisory Committee, the Florida Citrus Commission and the Florida Citrus Processors Association.
Once the board was expanded, NVDMC was funded by grower assessments made available through the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC). As HLB strained industry resources, funding shifted to a legislative appropriation, also made available through the FDOC budget.
Changing industry circumstances necessitated numerous shifts in focus and priorities. Greater emphasis was placed on the juice stream, while breeding and screening for HLB tolerance and varietal response to HLB management therapies became very necessary components of sponsored projects.
Though we are not out of the woods yet, there is certainly a noticeable rise in optimism. The great work of the citrus research teams, the Citrus Research and Development Foundation and now the Citrus Research and Field Trial Foundation is fueling hope. We will again have the luxury of placing greater emphasis on marketable varietal characteristics rather than a narrower focus on disease resistance.
Thank you, Frank, for building this foundation and leading us through the roughest road this industry has ever faced.
Peter Chaires is executive director of NVDMC.
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