01-28-2022, 02:10 PM
Florida Forecasted to Have Smallest Orange Crop Since 1945
Florida, the United States’s biggest producer of oranges, has been hit very hard by a bacterial issue known as citrus greening disease, also called Huanglongbing. As a result, orange production has been low lately, and USDA's current outlook for the 2021/2022 season (citrus is a winter fruit, and spans either side of New Year’s Day) would mean the lowest production in a whopping 77 years.
This comes on the heels from Texas citrus growers who are still feeling impact of last year’s big freeze. Rio Grande Valley farmers suffered as much as $380M in damages to both crops and trees.
Florida, the United States’s biggest producer of oranges, has been hit very hard by a bacterial issue known as citrus greening disease, also called Huanglongbing. As a result, orange production has been low lately, and USDA's current outlook for the 2021/2022 season (citrus is a winter fruit, and spans either side of New Year’s Day) would mean the lowest production in a whopping 77 years.
This comes on the heels from Texas citrus growers who are still feeling impact of last year’s big freeze. Rio Grande Valley farmers suffered as much as $380M in damages to both crops and trees.