The following grim report was released earlier today by Florida Citrus Mutual, and was sent to me by Bob Adair of The Florida Research Center for Agricultural Sustainability. Its implications for the conversion of ag land to development is obvious.
LAKELAND, Fla. (Dec. 19, 2005) – Today, more than 100 citrus growers attended a presentation by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and University of Florida/IFAS (UF/IFAS) scientists regarding the potential threat of citrus canker spread due to the 2005 hurricane season. Officials preliminarily project canker spread to impact an additional 169,000 to 183,000 acres in the next year, which is approximately 26-28% of the state’s current citrus acreage. Growers have lost more than 80,000 acres in the past year due to citrus canker spread during the 2004 hurricane season.
“The fact that officials are estimating a canker impact twice as large as last year is overwhelming,†said Florida Citrus Mutual Executive Vice President/CEO Andy LaVigne. “This could devastate the Florida citrus industry as we know it today and have an enormous trickle down impact on citrus-associated businesses and rural communities that rely heavily on the citrus industry for economic sustainability.â€
Growers are requesting that the USDA, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and UF/IFAS review the study presented today in order to determine how the 2005 hurricane activity will impact the viability of the Florida citrus industry.
Florida Citrus Mutual, founded in 1948, is the state’s largest citrus grower organization with nearly 10,000 members. The Florida citrus industry provides a $9.1 billion annual economic impact to the state, employs nearly 90,000 people and provides approximately 650,000 acres of greenspace.