Explore the state of the Florida citrus industry from the viewpoint of Florida citrus growers through the Citrus Industry Pulse survey.
The Florida citrus industry is facing a number of issues, so taking the state of the industry from the perspective of Florida citrus growers is important. Florida Grower released the results of their Citrus Industry Pulse survey in December, and while the overall sentiments seem good, there are definite issues with the market and prices. See the results of the survey below.
Results of the Citrus Industry Pulse Survey
Planting: Approximately 65% of respondents said they were actively replanting, about 12% said they were not replanting but were planning to in the next 12 months, and about 23% were not replanting.
Yield: Approximately 46% said they believed their grove would produce a higher yield than last year, a little over 30% said they believed the yield would be about the same, and a little over 20% said they did not think they would have a higher yield than last year.
Uncommitted Fruit: 40% of respondents said they still had uncommitted juice fruit.
Threats to the Citrus Industry: The largest threat to the Florida citrus industry identified by growers responding to the survey was prices and the ability to market fruit, followed by citrus greening.
Areas of Opportunity: Growers identified the continued scientific pursuit of a major breakthrough in defeating citrus greening as the area offering the greatest opportunity for Florida citrus, with enhanced marketing of orange juice to increase demand came in second. Growers identified entirely new production systems, like Citrus Under Protective Screens (CUPS) as offering the least opportunity.
See the results published by Florida Grower, and a link to get the full White Paper on the survey.
Griffin Fertilizer is committed to helping both growers and ranchers make sound agronomic and economic decisions in order to maximize the health of their grove and pasture. As a full-service custom dry & liquid fertilizer blender and crop protection product distributor, we will continue our mission to further advance Florida agriculture. For questions or concerns about your farm or pasture, contact us and one of our team will be in touch.