With an unsure market and lower prices, Florida citrus growers need to know the cost of production point to break even.
Florida citrus growers are facing numerous hardships, and an unsteady market and lower prices are not making things easier. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) assistant professor Ariel Singerman has crunched the numbers to determine what cost of production per acre will allow citrus growers to break even, lose money, or make a profit, given current market prices. The charts were published in a Citrus Industry article. See the details below.
Cost of Production Breakeven Charts
According to the article, Singerman said that there was a 26 percent decline in projected prices for early and mid-season oranges and a 25 percent decline for Valencias when compared with last year’s prices. Last year’s prices for early and mid-season oranges were $2.20 per pound solids and $2.38 per pound solids for Valencias; projected prices for the 2019-2020 are $1.62 per pound solids and $1.78 per pound solids, respectively.
Those numbers don’t factor in growers who still have uncommitted citrus. Singerman maintained that the obvious production costs per acre for those not able to sell their oranges would be zero. However, he added that growers should spend a “minimum amount because spending zero dollars could severely impact future crops; even spending a minimum amount could have a significant impact on future production.”
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