Increased Florida Department of Citrus Budget

Tacy Callies Florida Citrus Commission

On Oct. 21, the Florida Citrus Commission approved a revised 2020-21 operating budget for the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) of nearly $19.8 million. The commission voted to sustain the preliminary budget set in June, prior to the October crop forecast, through a box assessment of $.12 on oranges used for processing plus up to $1 million in fund balance. …

Sallin Named Woman of the Year in Ag

Ernie Neff Awards

Veronique Sallin has been named the 2020 Woman of the Year in Agriculture, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) announced. The recognition is for women who have made exceptional contributions to Florida agriculture. Honorees come from throughout the agriculture community. “Ms. Sallin’s unique leadership, passion and commitment continue to influence and broaden markets …

FFVA Selects Emerging Leader Class

Ernie Neff Education

The Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association (FFVA) recently announced the selection of 13 agriculture industry leaders for Class 10 of its Emerging Leader Development Program for the coming year. Class 10 members are: Sherri Atwell of Feeding Florida, Tallahassee Ariel Bauer of Hardee Fresh, Sebring Federico Boscolo of Cultiva Farms USA, Jennings Sasha Burgin of Burgin Farms, Wauchula Nathan Carson …

Indian River Variety Trial Attracts Visitors

Ernie Neff Varieties

Forty-nine growers and others participated in a self-guided, drive-through tour of the Millennium Block variety performance trial at the Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC) on Oct. 9. “Several growers highlighted trees are off to a good start, and despite the fact they’re young, they could see clear differences,” said host and IRREC researcher Rhuanito “Johnny” Ferrarezi. Ferrarezi works …

citrus

Commissioner Fried on Citrus Forecast

Tacy Callies Crop Forecast

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried offered the following statement on the initial citrus crop forecast for the 2020-21 season released today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA): “When Americans think of wellness and health, their thoughts turn to Florida orange juice and fresh citrus, especially during these unprecedented times. Despite the challenges that Florida’s citrus growers have faced as a …

citrus

Citrus Australia Wants Juice Rating Reconsidered

Ernie Neff International, Orange Juice

Citrus Australia says the country’s state governments “will be asked to bring common sense to the Health Star Rating (HSR) system” at a meeting in November. The rating system currently rates diet soft drinks as healthier than fresh Australian juice. Industry bodies have contacted Senator Richard Colbeck, chair of the Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation, asking …

Advice for Cold-Hardy Citrus Growers

Ernie Neff Marketing

North Florida citrus growers who are new to the industry received some marketing advice and background information recently from Vero Beach grower and packer Dan Richey. He gave a presentation during a virtual annual meeting of the Cold Hardy Citrus Association on Sept. 23. Richey, president and CEO of Riverfront Packing, urged the growers to have a plan and to …

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Progress Toward HLB-Tolerant Citrus

Tacy Callies Varieties

Largely due to the advent of huanglongbing (HLB) disease, Florida orange production has declined by over 70 percent in the last 10 years. According to experts, if the trend is not reversed, processing plants will not have enough fruit to maintain production and profitability, ultimately causing shutdowns. Currently, Florida law requires that orange juice be comprised of at least 90 …

Marketing North Florida Citrus

Ernie Neff Marketing

North Florida growers have planted several citrus groves in recent years. “A lot of those groves are starting to become productive,” Kevin Athearn said during a Sept. 23 Cold Hardy Citrus Association annual meeting, held virtually. Athearn, a regional specialized Extension agent, familiarized new citrus growers with some citrus terminology and suggested possible marketing strategies. “It’s important that we all …

New Rule for Florida Citrus Handlers

Ernie Neff Regulation

Citrus handlers in Florida must register with the Citrus Administrative Committee (CAC) in order to ship regulated citrus outside the production area beginning in the 2019-20 fiscal year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a final rule requiring the registration. The rule applies to the federal marketing order for oranges, grapefruit, tangerines and pummelos grown in Florida. The rule …

Mutual Reacts to Federal Plan for Imports

Ernie Neff Trade

A recently announced Trump administration plan (see the full 28-page document) to address the threat posed by increased foreign imports to American producers of seasonal and perishable fruits and vegetables does not specifically address citrus. But Florida Citrus Mutual (FCM) Executive Vice President/CEO Mike Sparks noted that many of Florida’s other fruits and vegetables weren’t specifically addressed in the plan, …

citrus crop forecast

New Economic Reports for Florida Citrus

Tacy Callies Economics

By Ariel Singerman Four reports summarizing Florida citrus industry survey-collected data during the 2019–2020 season are available at https://crec.ifas.ufl.edu/economics/. The reports include the average cost of production for processed oranges, harvesting charges, custom rate (or caretaking) charges and packing charges. The estimates presented in those reports, as well as those available for previous seasons, document the changes in the industry …

Sneak Peek: September 2020 Citrus Industry

Tacy Callies Sneak Peek

In just two days, more than 1,100 Citrus Expo participants viewed 28 educational videos. If you didn’t get a chance to visit the virtual Citrus, Vegetable & Specialty Crop Expo on Aug. 19–20, you can find highlights from the event in the September issue of Citrus Industry magazine. The educational videos will remain on the Citrus Expo website through the …

citrus crop forecast

New Global Citrus Event Coming Online

Ernie Neff Fresh

Fruitnet Media International and the World Citrus Organisation are teaming up to host the first-ever Global Citrus Congress Live on Nov. 5. The event is for everyone in the global supply chain of fresh citrus, from the farm gate to the supermarket shelf. The free-to-register online conference will focus on some of the big developments across the citrus category and …

Reusing Oilfield Produced Water for Irrigation

Tacy Callies California Corner, Irrigation

California citrus growers and other farmers in the Bakersfield area may feel vindicated with the result of a new study by researchers at Duke University and RTI International. As reported in the California Department of Food and Agriculture Planting Seeds blog, the study finds that reusing oilfield water that’s been mixed with surface water to irrigate farms in the Cawelo …

Forecast: Europe’s Tangerine Crop to Decline

Ernie Neff Crop Forecast

The European Union (EU) tangerine crop forecast for 2019-20 shows a 14 percent decrease from the previous year, to 2.7 million metric tons (MMT), the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) recently reported. The expected production is 13 percent lower than the nine-year average production of 3.1 MMT. The FAS reported that the EU has reduced its tangerine …

Citrus Salesperson Kay Hiatt Remembered

Ernie Neff Citrus, sales

Kiyo Ueda Hiatt, 94, died July 11 at Treasure Coast Hospice – Harper House in Stuart, Florida. She began working more than 50 years ago at Deerfield Groves in Florida. Hiatt worked in sales in the citrus industry and served on several Florida Department of Citrus subcommittees. She was a pioneer for women in the Florida citrus industry. Kay, as …

PIECES OF THE PAST: Orange Blossoms and Brides

Tacy Callies Pieces of the Past

By Brenda Eubanks Burnette The orange blossom has been part of wedding culture for centuries. Incorporating orange blossoms into the bride’s trousseau originated in ancient China where the white blossoms represented purity, chastity, innocence and fertility. In the article, “To Gather Orange Blossoms – History of Wedding Flowers Bouquets,” Cornelia Powell wrote, “There are few trees so prolific as the …

Growing Finger Limes in Florida: Lessons Learned So Far

Tacy Callies Limes

By Manjul Dutt and Jude Grosser Finger lime, a distant relative of sweet orange and grapefruit, is a relatively new crop species for Florida. It is an Australian native species that has been gaining in popularity and importance in the last few years because of its unique fruit characteristics and disease tolerance, which sets it apart from conventional sweet orange …

Duda Selling Imported Citrus

Ernie Neff Industry News Release

Duda Farm Fresh Foods has launched its 18th consecutive import citrus program. Through October, it will import citrus to the United Sates from the Southern Hemisphere. The imported citrus will be sold under the Dandy label and will include clementines, lemons, navels, and Cara Cara oranges. According to Duda Farm Fresh Foods, the easy-peel clementines have good color and sugar-to-acid …