IMG

IMG Citrus Completes Packinghouse Consolidation

Daniel CooperIndustry News Release, Packing

Citrus grower, importer and packer IMG Citrus, headquartered in Vero Beach, announced that its new flagship facility, Sweet Sixty, is fully operational. In 2022, IMG acquired the newly built 185,000-square-foot cold storage and packing facility formerly owned by J&J Fresh Produce. Sweet Sixty was always intended to be more than just additional square footage. It was part of a long-term …

IMG

IMG Citrus Moving Forward With More CUPS

Daniel CooperCUPS

A Nov. 22 Lake County farm tour, hosted by University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension, included a visit to the 13-acre citrus under protective screen (CUPS) site owned by IMG Citrus. Located in Groveland, the facility consists of Ruby Red grapefruit on Swingle rootstock planted in May 2022. Clint Updike, IMG citrus production manager, told farm …

cups

IMG Citrus Acquires Facility and Farmland

Josh McGillIndustry News Release

IMG Citrus, based in Vero Beach, Florida, has acquired J&J Fresh Produce assets. These assets, also located in Vero Beach, include a new 185,000-square-foot cold storage and packaging facility and 1,000 acres of farmland in the Delta Farms Water Control District. “This is an exciting acquisition and a key component of our growth strategy,” said Melanie Ressler, co-chief executive officer …

IMG Citrus Launches YELLOS Grapefruit

Ernie NeffGrapefruit

IMG Citrus announced the launch of the YELLOS Florida grapefruit brand and specialty product. “Although considered a new product on the U.S. market, the YELLOS grapefruit variety is in fact Florida’s original, heirloom grapefruit and the white-fleshed counterpart of the well-known Florida Ruby Red grapefruit,” the company stated. According to a press release, YELLOS are harvested from mature groves more …

IMG Citrus Buys 2,500-Acre Grove

Ernie NeffIndustry News Release

IMG Citrus, a citrus grower, packer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, recently bought a 2,500-acre grove in Charlotte County. The grove increases the company’s control of citrus land management in Florida by 27%; it now has 11,387 acres. The property was acquired from the Packers of Indian River. The grove was originally planted in the 1990s and known as …

IMG Citrus Celebrates 40 Years in Business

Daniel CooperIndustry News Release

IMG Citrus, a family-owned, vertically integrated citrus grower, packer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, is celebrating 40 years in business. The business began in 1979 when Michel Sallin, IMG Citrus president, traveled to Florida seeking investment opportunities in agriculture. Sallin and his wife Veronique’s first investment, 72 acres of Hamlin orange groves in Manatee County, would become the beginning …

Sales Leadership Changes at IMG Citrus

Daniel CooperIndustry News Release

IMG Citrus, a family-owned, vertically-integrated citrus grower, packer, importer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, announced the upcoming retirement of Vice President, Veronique Sallin, after 40 years with the company. Sallin’s retirement will officially begin at the end of the 2019-2020 Florida citrus season. The company further announces the promotion of Sydney Allison to the role of director of sales. …

img

IMG Citrus Invests in Packinghouse

Daniel CooperIndustry News Release, Technology

IMG Citrus, a family-owned, vertically integrated citrus grower, packer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, has invested $1.5 million into its packinghouse processing line. The company added a state-of-the-art electronic fruit grader, the Global Scan 7, manufactured in France. The new sorter has the ability to precisely capture 120 images per fruit and up to 120 fruit per second in …

haffield

Haffield Reprises Role at IMG Citrus

Daniel CooperIndustry News Release

IMG Citrus, a family-owned, vertically-integrated citrus grower, packer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, renamed Todd Haffield as director of packinghouse operations. He previously held this role with the company from 2010 to 2017. Haffield has been with IMG Citrus since 1999 in various logistics and sales roles in addition to his director position. He contributed to many operational improvements, …

IMG Citrus Adds 4,000-Acre Grove to Portfolio

Daniel CooperCitrus, Industry News Release

The future of Florida citrus is bright. IMG Citrus, a family-owned, vertically-integrated citrus grower, packer and shipper in Vero Beach, Florida, announced the acquisition of one of the largest grapefruit groves in St. Lucie County. The 4,000-acre grove increases IMG’s control of citrus land management in Florida by over 75 percent, securing the company’s position as an established citrus leader …

Georgia citrus

Sutton Shares Georgia Citrus Update

Daniel Cooperfreeze, Georgia

Recent cooler morning and evening weather should soon lead to color in Georgia citrus fruit, according to University of Georgia (UGA) Assistant Professor and Citrus Extension Specialist Mary Sutton. “In a lot of places, we’ve already transitioned from dark green to a lighter green with some yellow starting to peek through,” Sutton reported in an update to Georgia growers. “Cooler …

citrus

CITRUS NURSERY SOURCE: An Ever-Evolving Industry

Daniel CooperCitrus Nursery Source

By Peter Chaires Coincidentally, or perhaps ironically, Spencer Johnson’s famous book “Who Moved My Cheese?” was published in 1998, the same year the Asian citrus psyllid arrived in Florida. This was seven years before the first detection of HLB. Had he postponed his book for a few years, Florida’s citrus industry could have been a live laboratory in the study …

juice market

Juice Market Viability for Cold-Hardy Citrus Growers

Daniel CooperCold Hardy, Georgia

A Georgia citrus industry leader believes the juice market can be a viable alternative for satsuma mandarins. But first, Georgia will need the infrastructure in place to make that a reality, says Lindy Savelle, executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association. “Georgia needs an extractor, because hauling a semi-load of oranges to Florida to be juiced is risky and problematic,” …

grower assessment

Florida Citrus Commission Sets Grower Assessments and Hears Reports

Daniel CooperEconomics, Florida Department of Citrus, Marketing

The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) on Oct. 28 set the 2026–27 grower assessments that help fund the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) and heard marketing and economic reports. ASSESSMENTS As recommended by the FDOC staff, the FCC approved grower assessment rates for 2026–27 that are unchanged from the previous season. The per-box rates are 5 cents for fresh oranges, 7 …

November

Sneak Peek: November 2026 Citrus Industry

Daniel CooperSneak Peek

The November issue of Specialty Crop Grower magazine features a Citrus Industry section with insights on protected production, promising citrus genetics, industry research priorities and more. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers explore how the microclimate inside citrus under protective screen structures contributes to higher yields and better fruit quality. Research shows that the screens …

fertilizers

Citrus May Benefit by Combining Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers

Daniel CooperInternational, Nutrition, Research

Combining organic materials with conventional fertilizers may help citrus growers improve yields, fruit quality and soil health, according to a study published recently in Scientia Horticulturae. The study evaluated three citrus cultivars — Ehime, Haruka and Orah — in orchards in Chongqing, China, from 2022 to 2024. Researchers compared conventional inorganic fertilizer with fertilizers combining inorganic nutrients and organic materials …

Pinellas

PIECES OF THE PAST: A Pinellas Citrus Legacy

Daniel CooperPieces of the Past

By Brenda Eubanks Burnette Every so often, a name from Florida’s early citrus days rises above the rest — not just because of what they built, but because of how deeply their work shaped the communities around them. John Stansel Taylor is one of those names. If you grew up anywhere near Largo or Pinellas County, you’ve felt his influence …

projects

Citrus Projects Funded in Five States

Daniel CooperResearch, USDA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Oct. 13 it is awarding $86.6 million in grant funding to support the specialty crop industry through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. The funding includes citrus-specific projects in Arizona, California, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas. ARIZONA University of Arizona Yuma Agricultural Center has funding of $94,506 to deploy two real-time flux tower systems in …

citrus congress

Citrus Congress To Tackle Global Market Challenges

Daniel CooperEvents, International, Marketing

Fruitnet Citrus Congress 2026 will assemble growers, exporters, importers, retailers, breeders, technology providers and other industry specialists to address fresh citrus marketing Nov. 24–25 in Valencia, Spain. At the heart of this year’s program is an international panel bringing together players from Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, Spain and South Africa. As new suppliers claim a greater share of the European market, …

crop

‘Exceptional’ Crop Expected in Cold-Hardy Citrus Region

Daniel CooperCold Hardy, Production

On the cusp of another harvest season, Lindy Savelle, executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association, believes there will be a bumper crop in the South Georgia, North Florida and South Alabama areas. “I’ve not talked to a single person who has said, ‘I’m not going to have fruit this year’ — not with satsumas and not with Cara Caras. …