Drew Dixon
The projection for Florida’s citrus harvest season is improving after another positive adjustment to the forecast.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its revised forecast Thursday. Florida farmers are now projected to produce some 12 million boxes of oranges, while analysts predict there will be 1.3 million boxes of grapefruit and 400,000 boxes of tangerines and tangelos when the harvest is completed later this year.
Those orange figures are up from May’s forecast, which foresaw only 11.63 million boxes. The grapefruit and tangerine and tangelo harvest forecasts remain the same from May.
The latest forecast is the second-to-last report to be released for this season.
Florida citrus industry leaders are thrilled with the newest update from the USDA.
“The USDA’s June citrus crop forecast of 12 million boxes marks continued improvement in two consecutive months, a step in the right direction toward a brighter future for Florida’s citrus industry in the years to come,” said Matt Joyner, Executive Vice President and CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual.
“Growers continue to persevere despite the impacts of citrus greening and repeated hurricanes that have taken a toll on their crop.”
The increasing harvest projection is a significant turnaround from USDA forecasts that were dour in the Fall after Hurricanes Helene and Milton rattled the citrus industry in September and October.
Analysts said shortly after the storms that they expected only 11.5 million boxes of oranges to be harvested this year, along with 1.1 million boxes of grapefruit and 350,000 boxes of tangerines and tangelos.
Adding to the latest good news for Florida citrus growers, Joyner said the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee announced Wednesday that lawmakers will include funding for an Emergency Citrus Disease Research and Extension Program in the Farm Bill that develops measures to combat citrus diseases that have long hampered citrus growers in Florida.
Despite the upward trend of forecasts for this season, projected output for Florida citrus growers remains among all-time historic lows due in part to greening.
