The forecast for Florida’s citrus industry isn’t so sunny

The Sunshine State’s citrus growers are asking for some juice, calling on state lawmakers this week to continue providing money to help an industry that’s seen production fall 90+% in less than three decades.

• Florida produced 50 million boxes of grapefruit and 244 million boxes of oranges in 1998, when the industry was at its peak, according to Florida Citrus Mutual.
• This growing season, the state is projected to produce 1.2 million boxes of grapefruit and 12 million boxes of oranges (the lowest total since 1930).

Behind the squeeze: An incurable deadly citrus disease called greening has decimated orange production. And hurricanes Ian, Irma, and, most recently, Milton have only compounded this slowdown – Milton knocked three million boxes off this growing season’s production estimates, per US Department of Agriculture figures released in December.

The state’s budget impacts the industry: Governor Ron DeSantis recently released a budget proposal for the 2025-2026 fiscal year that includes $20 million for citrus research to combat greening, among other things; lawmakers will consider the proposal during a legislative session beginning March 4. The citrus industry is receiving $47 million for research and marketing from the state this fiscal year, which runs through June.

🍊 Zoom out: Despite Florida’s woes, America’s citrus industry is growing. US production is estimated to increase 8% in 2024-2025 due to higher yields in California, per Department of Agriculture figures released last month.