Brazil's

Brazil’s First Forecast for the 2024–25 Citrus Season

Daniel CooperBrazil, Crop Forecast

The 2024–25 orange crop forecast for Brazil’s São Paulo and West-Southwest Minas Gerais citrus belt, published on May 10 by Fundecitrus and its cooperators, is 232.38 million 90-pound boxes. The projected volume represents a significant drop of 24.36% as compared to the previous crop of 307.22 million boxes. VARIETY BREAKDOWN Production by variety is divided as follows (figures in parentheses …

citrus crop

Florida Citrus Crop Reduced

Daniel CooperCrop Forecast, Florida

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Statistics Board released an update to the 2023–24 citrus crop forecast on May 10. FLORIDA ORANGES The Florida orange forecast is lowered 1 million boxes to 17.8 million boxes, representing a 5% decrease from the April forecast. The reduction is in the Valencia crop, which dropped 8% from 12 million boxes to 11 …

Gulf Citrus Growers Association

Gulf Citrus Growers Association Closes Doors

Daniel CooperGulf

Wayne Simmons, president of the Gulf Citrus Growers Association (GCGA), sent the following letter to the group’s membership on May 6 to announce the association will be ceasing operations: “For nearly 40 years, the Gulf Citrus Growers Association has represented the citrus growers of Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties with professional integrity, dedication and effectiveness. So it is …

farm bill

Farm Bill Frameworks Favorable for Citrus

Daniel CooperFarm Bill, Legislative

Last week, Glenn “GT” Thompson, chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, unveiled an outline of the bipartisan policies and priorities of the 2024 farm bill. The legislation, scheduled to be marked up by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Agriculture on May 23, holds the key to crucial resources for various agricultural commodities, including Florida’s citrus industry. On the …

panel

Panel Discussions Highlight Florida Citrus Show Seminars

Daniel CooperBreeding, HLB Management

A pair of panel discussions during the citrus seminars at the Florida Citrus Show gave growers the opportunity to engage with experts on top-of-mind topics. BREEDER RECOMMENDATIONS The citrus seminar program started with a discussion among citrus breeders moderated by Flavia Zambon, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) assistant professor at the Indian River Research and …

China

Citrus Breeding Advancement Announced in China

Daniel CooperBreeding, International

The National Center for Citrus Variety Improvement in Chongqing’s Western Science City in China has created Citrus Core 1. The world’s first citrus liquid breeding chip, Citrus Core 1 boosts breeding efficiency. Breeding chips play a vital role in germplasm genotyping for biological breeding, which is crucial for crop genetic enhancement and research. China is a significant player in breeding …

Planting Cold-Hardy

Planting Cold-Hardy Citrus in Florida

Daniel CooperCold Hardy, planting

Muhmmad Shahid and Shahid Iqbal recently provided advice on planting cold-hardy citrus in Florida. Shahid is an assistant professor of horticulture/fruit physiologist, and Iqbal is a postdoctoral scholar in horticultural sciences, both at the University of Florida North Florida Research and Education Center. Edited excerpts from their article in the Cold Hardy Citrus Connection follow: BEFORE YOU PLANT Properly planting …

field day

Finger Lime Field Day Draws Mostly Non-Citrus Crowd

Daniel CooperEvents, Limes

Only a few Florida commercial citrus growers were on hand for an April 24 finger lime field day at the Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in Lake Alfred. Most of the more than 40 attendees did not own citrus groves, and about half were women — definitely not the standard crowd for a CREC event. Those in attendance had …

Chilean Citrus

Chilean Citrus Export Expectations

Daniel CooperExport, Export/Import, International

The Chilean Citrus Committee recently estimated that global citrus exports from Chile will total 383,000 tons this season, a 4% decline from 2023. Export declines are projected for clementines, mandarins and oranges. Lemons are the only citrus fruit forecast to have increased export volume this season. The committee forecast clementine export volume of 40,000 tons, which is 35% less than …

Citrus thrips

California Growers Gear Up for Citrus Thrips Threat

Daniel CooperCalifornia Corner, Pests

Citrus thrips caused serious problems for many California growers last year. This year, growers appear to be gearing up in case it is another bad season for thrips. “Going into this spring, there’s a lot of eyes on it,” said Colby Campbell, general manager of Cobblestone Fruit. “Everybody’s watching, and I think everybody has made preparations. Guys have called ahead …

may

Sneak Peek: May 2024 Citrus Industry

Daniel CooperHLB Management, hurricane, Sneak Peek

Inside the May issue of Citrus Industry magazine, you’ll find photos and coverage from the Florida Citrus Show. The annual grower-focused event was held in Fort Pierce on April 3. A high point of the day was the outdoor trade show of exhibitors serving an array of tailgate-style foods to attendees. Educational programs included a general session on current agricultural …

Investing

Investing in New Citrus Plantings in Brazil Can Be Worthwhile

Daniel CooperBrazil, Economics, planting

A study by Brazilian citrus consultant Gilberto Tozatti indicated that even under high HLB pressure, but with reasonable prices, it is worth investing in new citrus plantings. Tozatti’s study, presented at the recent International Research Conference on HLB, received support from the Group of Citrus Consultants (GCONCI). Tozatti summarized his presentation: Brazil is the world leader in the production of …

Southern Hemisphere

Forecast for Southern Hemisphere Citrus Production

Daniel CooperCrop Forecast, International

The World Citrus Organisation’s (WCO) preliminary forecast for the 2024 Southern Hemisphere citrus season projects total production will decrease 0.77% from the prior year. Production for Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, South Africa and Uruguay is estimated at 24.34 million tons this year. The WCO broke the forecast down by variety: CLIMATIC CONDITIONS IMPACT PRODUCTION The Southern Hemisphere’s 2024 …

June

All In For Citrus Podcast, April 2024

Daniel CooperAll In For Citrus Podcast

April was a busy month for citrus events. The Florida Citrus Show was held April 3 in Fort Pierce followed by the Florida Citrus Growers’ Institute in Avon Park on April 9. These events were a topic of discussion between All In For Citrus podcast host Frank Giles and Michael Rogers, director of the University of Florida Institute of Food …

sprayer

PIECES OF THE PAST: Citrus Sprayer Innovation

Daniel CooperIrrigation, Pieces of the Past

By Brenda Eubanks Burnette In the early 1900s, there were a number of inventions made to help the growing citrus industry flourish. One of those inventions took place in Winter Haven at the Van Fleet Company in Florence Villa. The company manufactured the Van Fleet sprayer. An article in the May 1920 issue of The Citrus Industry magazine described it …

harvest+

Brazil’s Harvest+ Seeks Improved Citrus Harvesting

Daniel CooperBrazil, Harvesting

Brazil’s Fundecitrus, in partnership with the companies Agricef and Move Agro, has created the Harvest+ project that seeks to improve the country’s orange harvest. In addition to enhancing the manual harvesting process, the project is searching for mechanized and semi-mechanized solutions for citrus farming. Harvest+ is in response to demand from producers and companies that want equipment capable of harvesting …

breeding program

California Citrus Breeding Program Gets More Funds

Daniel CooperBreeding, California Corner

The presidents of the Citrus Research Board (CRB) and California Citrus Mutual (CCM) applauded congressional leaders for recently approving additional funds for the new citrus breeding program in Parlier, California. Congress is allocating an additional $500,000 in federal funding on top of the $1 million granted last year to expand the program into California. The program will now receive $1.5 million in …

research

Evolving Research Priorities for Florida Citrus

Daniel CooperCRDF, Research

Last week, growers convened in Avon Park for the annual Florida Citrus Growers’ Institute. The daylong seminar program provides updates on the latest research in the fight against HLB and other production issues facing growers. Rick Dantzler, chief operating officer of the Citrus Research and Development Foundation (CRDF), presented an update on the organization’s research priorities. He noted that CRDF …

states

April Citrus Forecast: Florida Down, Other States Up

Daniel CooperCrop Forecast

The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA NASS) issued a citrus forecast update on April 11. Florida production decreased while other states saw gains. FLORIDA The forecast for all Florida oranges dropped 5% from 19.8 million boxes in the March forecast to 18.8 million boxes in April. The entire 1 million box reduction was in the late-season …

Citrus Administrative Committee

Nominations Needed for Florida’s Citrus Administrative Committee

Daniel CooperFresh, Regulation

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominees for 10 grower members and 10 alternate members for the Citrus Administrative Committee (CAC). The committee is also accepting nominations for a public member and public alternate. Nominations will be accepted through April 16. Voting will take place April 23 at a nomination meeting via Zoom. The CAC administers a federal …