The end of Florida orange juice? A lethal disease is devastating the state's citrus industry.
Ninety percent of the state’s groves are infected by a bacterium called huang long bing, which, like oranges, originated in China. The pathogen often prevents raw green fruit from ripening, a symptom called citrus greening. Even when the fruit does ripen, it sometimes drops to the ground before it can be picked. Under Florida law, citrus that falls from a tree untouched cannot be sold.
As the state prepares for the November to May harvest, thousands of growers have already quit, leaving “ghost groves” in their wake. More than 7,000 farmers grew citrus in 2004; since then, nearly 5,000 have dropped out.
About two-thirds of the factories that processed fruit to juice have shut down. The number of packing operations – which make oranges, tangerines and grapefruit look polished for picky buyers – has nosedived from nearly 80 to 26. And 34,000 jobs were eliminated in the 10 years up to 2016, according to a University of Florida study.
The loss of so many farmers and citrus cultivation could be the death the state’s second-largest industry behind tourism, and one that produces more than 80 percent of the country’s orange juice, some economists say.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/11/09/end-florida-orange-juice-lethal-disease-is-decimating-its-citrus-industry/
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Groves are constantly scouting for citrus greening. There are quarantines etc. Can't move citrus trees into and out of certain counties in Texas. I'm sure Florida is much stricter.
I don't know what's going on with the oranges in your store......Did you know that an orange is not a natural occurring fruit? It's a hybird between a mandarin and a pomelo (a large grapefruit type fruit).
Pomelo:
Mandarins will always have thinner skin than oranges, simply because of the pomelo parentage in sweet oranges.
Clementines are a mandarin.
The area where I live was (seemed to me) about half citrus groves and half cattle ranches.
I made the mistake of calling the groves orchards and I was scolded severely.
Now both the groves and the ranches are disappearing in favor of housing developments. Dozens of them.
One die hard citrus farmer around the corner from me keeps re-planting every time a disease takes out his groves. He sold most of his land to a housing development and (I suppose) used the money to re-plant and keep his remaining trees alive.
The scent of orange blossoms in March is so heavenly I can't even describe it. We make a point of walking the dog past his house so we can take in the beautiful perfume. It used to be that the whole town had the scent of orange blossoms but most of the groves are gone now.
I feel sad that Florida is changing like this.
I know most people think that Florida is beaches and knuckle dragging MAGA supporters. It's true that many in my town are republicans. But it is so beautiful where I live. I tried living nearer the beach for 6-7 years and missed my little rural town.
Florida is more than hanging chads and thieving republican politicians. I wish people from other states wouldn't assume all of us are MAGA supporters. Our elections have been stolen many times over now.
