Brazil’s Fundecitrus launched the Good Fruits program, aimed at adoption of legal practices in labor relations, during the recent Expocitrus event. The program’s objectives are to contribute to more responsible management on rural properties, strengthen compliance with Brazilian standards and promote a fairer, safer and more productive work environment. After launching the project, Fundecitrus distributed the guide “Employer Good Practices …
Fundecitrus Honors São Paulo Ag Secretary
Brazil’s Fundecitrus recently led a tribute to Guilherme Piai, secretary of agriculture and supply of the state of São Paulo. The recognition of the secretary’s support in the fight against citrus greening occurred during the opening ceremony of the 50th Expocitrus/46th Citrus Week. Fundecitrus Executive Director Juliano Ayres presented Piai with a symbolic trophy in gratitude for his work and …
Citrus Engineer Honored
Ivaldo Sala, coordinator of the Fundecitrus Technology Transfer department, recently received the Outstanding Agricultural Engineer in Citrus award. The award was granted by organizers of the 50th Expocitrus/46th Citrus Week in Brazil. The award ceremony was part of the opening afternoon of the exhibition week. Sala, who has worked at Fundecitrus 32 years, said, “We have worked tirelessly, transforming the …
HLB in Brazil: Focus on Psyllid Control
Fundecitrus researcher Renato Bassanezi recently emphasized the importance of controlling the psyllid that spreads huanglongbing (HLB, also known as citrus greening) in Brazil. Bassanezi pointed out that with the increase of HLB-spreading psyllids recorded in 2023 and the lack of eradication of diseased trees, controlling the HLB-spreading insect becomes increasingly important. The researcher said there can be no failures in …
Brazil Announces 2025–26 Initial Orange Forecast
Fundecitrus and its cooperators on May 9 forecast the 2025–26 orange harvest in Brazil’s Citrus Belt of São Paulo and Triângulo/Sudoeste Mineiro at 314.6 million boxes. That would be a 36.2% increase over the 2024–25 harvest of 230.87 million boxes. The expected larger harvest is mainly attributed to more fruit per tree. The increased number of fruit is due to …
Greening-Resistant Orange Tree Research Progresses
Researchers with the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) recently visited Brazil to discuss cooperative efforts with Fundecitrus to develop greening-resistant orange trees. The CIRAD researchers were Raphaël Morillon and Bárbara Hufnagel. CIRAD is an agronomic research and international cooperation organization for the sustainable development of tropical and Mediterranean regions. CIRAD maintains a large citrus genomic database on …
Fundecitrus Researchers Visit Australia on Greening Mission
Fundecitrus researchers Juan Arenas, Mônica Neli Alves and Sílvio Lopes recently participated in the Conference of the International Organization of Citrus Virologists in Mildura, Australia. Alves discussed research conducted by Fundecitrus exploring the use of species in the genetic improvement of citrus trees resistant to greening. Lopes presented a comparative overview of greening and citrus variegated chlorosis, two of the …
Brazilian Psyllid Population Drops
The population of HLB-transmitting psyllids in Brazil dropped a significant 40% in 2024 from the prior year. Despite that drop, the psyllid population remains above the average recorded between 2014 and 2019, a period before the insect’s resistance to some insecticides was identified. This data reinforces the need for effective control strategies to prevent new psyllid population increases, according to …
Branch Rot Hits Brazilian Orchards
The disease branch rot is worrying Brazilian citrus growers because of its recent increased occurrence in orchards. Branch rot is also called peduncular rot, branch gummosis or bot gummosis. The main reason for the disease’s occurrence is stress caused to citrus plants by high temperatures, severe periods of drought and attacks from other diseases, such as greening. Fungi of the …
Final Forecast for Brazil’s Orange Season
Fundecitrus and its cooperators released the final orange forecast of the 2024–25 season for Brazil on April 10. Final production in the São Paulo and West-Southwest Minas Gerais Citrus Belt was 230.87 million 90-pound boxes of oranges, a 1% increase from the last forecast in February. The 2024–25 crop was confirmed as the second smallest in the last 37 years. …
Climate Impacts Citrus and Psyllids in Brazil
Fundecitrus researcher Silvio Lopes and agricultural engineer Orlando Lucato Neto recently addressed how climate variation impacts the development of citrus shoots — the HLB-spreading psyllid’s main food source. They also discussed the incidence of psyllids in Brazilian orchards. Lopes said climate impacts the three components of HLB disease: the citrus plant, the vector insect (psyllid) and the causative bacteria. “The …
‘Zero and 10’ Is Brazil Greening Campaign Motto
“For the incidence to be zero, the control needs to be 10.” That’s the motto of the new Fundecitrus campaign to mitigate the incidence of citrus greening in Brazil. The campaign highlights the need for strict control of the greening-spreading psyllid, especially in new regions where citrus farming is advancing. Those regions include the states of Mato Grosso do Sul, …
Psyllid Capture Rate Decreases in Brazil
The capture of greening-spreading psyllids in traps in the Brazilian Citrus Belt states of São Paulo (SP) and Triângulo Sudoeste Mineiro dropped 41% in 2024 compared to 2023. The data is part of a survey carried out biweekly by Fundecitrus and made available on the Psyllid Alert platform. The average capture recorded in 2023 was 2.23 psyllids per trap, compared …
Mechanical Harvesting Highlighted at Demo Citrus
A citrus mechanical harvesting demonstration and a discussion of Brazilian citrus farming were among presentations at Demo Citrus 2025, held in Seville, Spain in late January. Harvest+ demonstrated a robot harvesting oranges. Harvest+ is a consortium of Fundecitrus, Move Agro and the Andalusian Institute for Research and Training in Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Organic Production in partnership with Pek Automotive. …
Update to Brazil’s Orange Crop Forecast
Fundecitrus and its cooperators released an orange crop forecast on Feb. 10. Total production is forecast to be 228.52 million boxes for 2024–25. This is a 2.4% increase from the December forecast of 223.14 million boxes, but a decrease of 1.7% from the season’s initial orange estimate that was released in May. This forecast is for the São Paulo and …
Citrus Greening, Production and Plantings in Brazil
The recent U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS) annual report on Brazilian citrus included updates on citrus greening disease, production and planted area. CITRUS GREENING The report noted that new chemicals and practices have been developed to fight citrus greening, a major cause of recent production declines. Those chemicals and practices include a natural repellent called caryophyllene, …
Psyllid Insecticides Effective in Brazil’s New Citrus Regions
Citrus growing is migrating to additional areas in Brazil, such as the Triângulo Mineiro region, the northwest of of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul. For this reason, Fundecitrus began testing insecticides in these areas and observed that some products, to which the HLB-spreading psyllid is often resistant, performed well in the initial evaluation. Fundecitrus researcher Marcelo Miranda said …
Planting Layout Reduces HLB-Spreading Psyllids
A Brazilian study has shown that planting citrus plots parallel to the property boundary reduced HLB-spreading psyllids 12% to 23% compared to plots planted perpendicular to the property boundary. Fundecitrus conducted the study. The São Paulo Research Foundation co-financed it in partnership with Embrapa. Another study conclusion is related to the impact of planting density on border plots. Fundecitrus researcher …
Fundecitrus Researchers Participate in International Citrus Conference
Researchers with Brazil’s Fundecitrus discussed HLB-related topics at the recent 15th International Citrus Conference in South Korea. Fundecitrus’ Franklin Behlau participated in the section of papers related to HLB, also known as citrus greening disease. Most of the papers provided updates on the disease situation in different locations, including Florida, China, India, Nepal, Indonesia, Iran and Brazil. Behlau discussed the …
Fundecitrus Signs Agreement Seeking HLB Solutions
Nelson Wulff of Fundecitrus recently signed a technical cooperation agreement between Fundecitrus and the National Center of Genetic Resources (Cenargen/Embrapa) for a project to develop biotechnological solutions for HLB. Wulff, coordinator of the Fundecitrus Biotechnology and Diagnostics Laboratory, signed the agreement at the 50th anniversary ceremony of Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology in Brazil. Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology has …