(FCHOF) — The Selection Committee for the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame has announced three distinguished leaders who will be inducted into the hall of fame during the 57th Citrus Celebration Luncheon. Frank E. Gardner (deceased), formerly of Orlando; John M. Kennedy, Sr. (deceased), formerly of Umatilla; and Karick Price, Sr. (deceased), formerly of Orlando, will be honored at the …
Florida’s Citrus Industry: A Balanced Perspective
The Washington Post recently published a “well-balanced article” about Florida’s citrus industry, telling its woes as well as progress against HLB, says Michael Rogers. “We hosted a reporter from the Washington Post back in July of this year,” says Rogers, director of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center. “I think …
Citrus Commission Rejects Tax Hike for Marketing
(NSF) — Small growers of Florida’s signature crop, expressing concerns about the future of the citrus industry, indicated a willingness Wednesday to pay a higher tax rate if it gets people to drink more orange juice. But the Florida Citrus Commission rejected a proposal to raise from 7 cents to 12 cents a per-box tax on oranges that growers pay …
Varieties Update: OLL-20 and Bingo
Fred Gmitter provided an update at Citrus Expo on University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) citrus varieties, including OLL-20 and Bingo. Gmitter is a UF/IFAS citrus plant breeder and geneticist at the Citrus Research and Education Center. Gmitter said OLL-20, a new sweet orange, has “exceptional flavor characteristics … It looks to be something that could …
Citrus Oversupply Latest Hurdle for Florida Growers
(NSF) — Hurricane Irma continues to challenge Florida’s citrus industry. Two growing seasons separated from the September 2017 storm that flooded groves and uprooted citrus trees across the state, the industry has seen production rebound quicker than some anticipated. But now the problem is an oversupply of citrus because of fruit from other countries, and Florida growers may be forced …
Grower Frustration Mounting Over Millions of Uncommitted Boxes
Highlands County grower Jarred Eddy recently shared his frustration with the Florida Citrus Commission over his failure to receive any offers for the fruit from his 200-acre grove. Following Eddy’s Oct. 23 presentation, he and Highlands County Citrus Growers Association Executive Director Ray Royce discussed the problem. Eddy says he expected offers several times since the middle of summer, but “as …
FDOC Tax Rate Still Under Debate
The Florida Citrus Commission continues to discuss the current season budget and grower tax rates for the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC). Commission Chairman Ellis Hunt said Wednesday there is “a good possibility” the commission will set the budget and tax rates at a Nov. 20 meeting. In normal years, the budget and tax rates are set by the end of …
FDOC Budget and Rates: More Info Sought
The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC), governing board of the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC), is still seeking information before setting grower taxes and a budget for this season. The FCC held the latest in a series of marketing and budget workshops Oct. 18. At the most recent workshop, FDOC Executive Director Shannon Shepp asked commissioners if they could offer an …
Grower Reacts to Citrus Forecast
John Gose with Lykes Citrus was among the growers who gathered at a Florida Citrus Mutual luncheon in Bartow to hear the announcement of the initial citrus crop forecast of the 2019–20 season. He offers his perspectives on the forecast in this interview with Citrus Industry magazine Editor Tacy Callies. “It was pretty close to what I was expecting,” Gose …
Sparks on Forecast, FDOC Taxes
Florida Citrus Mutual Executive Vice President/CEO Mike Sparks weighs in on the recent Florida citrus crop forecast and explains why Mutual currently opposes a Florida Department of Citrus tax increase. “I have mixed emotions on the crop estimate,” Sparks says. “The 74 million boxes (of oranges) is good news. It shows that the industry’s starting to recover.” On the other …
Observations on the 2019 Brazilian Citrus Industry
By Thomas Stopyra, Certified Crop Advisor Note: The following report is based on data gathered from a variety of sources and reflects the personal opinion of the author. It should not be used as a basis for buying, selling or speculating futures or any other business decisions regarding agricultural enterprises or commodities. The recent estimate published by Fundecitrus for the …
Sneak Peek: September 2019 Citrus Industry Magazine
The September issue of Citrus Industry features highlights from this year’s record-setting Citrus Expo. Inside you’ll find: An overview and photos from the trade show and educational programs A report in the Pulpwash column on the general session, which included speakers who addressed three hot topics in Florida ag: hemp, water and labor Research updates from the citrus seminar program, …
Citrus Expo Seminar Program Preview
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) horticulturist Tripti Vashisth discusses the citrus seminars to be presented Aug. 14-15 at Citrus Expo. She also reports on a presentation she’ll make at Expo regarding fruit drop. Vashisth is organizing the Citrus Expo educational sessions for growers. She says the goal is to present “something useful for the growers …
More Predictable Market Ahead
By Marcos Fava Neves With the announcement of the 2019–20 crop in Brazil and Florida’s season over, more information is now available to see where the global orange juice market is headed. HIGHER FLORIDA INVENTORIESAs of July, Florida had 71.6 million boxes of oranges, 200,000 boxes more than the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s June estimate. Inventories in Florida are high. …
Citrus Marketing via Social Media
A presentation that David Armano, global strategy director at Edelman/Edible, made at the Florida Citrus Mutual annual conference this summer focused on marketing via social media. His company is the Florida Department of Citrus’ (FDOC) consumer marketing agency. Following his presentation, he and FDOC Executive Director Shannon Shepp discussed the use of social media for marketing Florida citrus. “We found …
FDOC Response to Cancer Study
A new study suggesting a link between sugary drink consumption, including 100% fruit juice, and increased cancer risk was recently published in a medical journal. The study has spurred a series of news media stories. Researchers of the study, who are based in France, assessed the associations between the consumption of sugary drinks (sugar sweetened beverages and 100% fruit juices), …
Miss Florida Citrus Advances to Miss America Pageant
Miss Florida Michaela McLean of Clermont loves Florida orange juice. “I don’t have a choice,” she says with a laugh. After all, she comes from a fifth- generation citrus family. Her father is Ben McLean III, a board member of the Citrus Research and Development Foundation. She has helped customers in her grandfather Benny McLean’s u-pick grove and rung up …
Florida Department of Citrus to Study OJ Consumption
Amid ongoing struggles in Florida’s citrus industry, the Florida Department of Citrus appears to be turning attention to studying orange juice consumption. The department said Tuesday it is looking for three separate studies that would assess various aspects of orange juice consumption, including how it can affect people’s moods when drinking it as a snack. According to a bid notice, …
Growers Have a Bigger Problem Than HLB
“A bigger gorilla by far than HLB, going into the future, is slumping market demand for citrus products from Florida and apparently from other producing areas in the United States as well,” declares Apopka citrus grower Chip Henry of McGuire Groves. He believes the decline in demand for Florida citrus products is related to HLB reducing fruit quality. “Consumers are …
Florida Citrus Commission Approves Preliminary 2019-20 Budget
The Florida Citrus Commission approved a preliminary 2019-20 budget for the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) based on an estimate of 71.40 million boxes of oranges and 4.51 million boxes of grapefruit. Presented Wednesday, the department’s total preliminary budget is $14.82 million with an overall budget decrease of about $4 million over the previous year, which is largely due to …