The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has lowered its estimate of the 2015/16 Florida orange crop by almost 7 per cent, or 5m boxes, to a new forecast 69m boxes.
The USDA dropped 1m boxes off early-mid varieties, now pegging them at 36m boxes and 4m boxes off Valencias which put that variety at 33m boxes.
'The lower estimate is a reflection of the times and the challenges our growers face,' said Michael Sparks, executive vice-president and CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual. 'We knew this year's crop was going to be the lowest in years but this is a bit surprising.
'The silver lining is that the lower crop should put upward pressure on grower returns which they need to cover ever increasing production costs,' Sparks continued. 'I do know our growers are resilient and we are going to keep grinding away.'
Florida growers are now battling citrus greening, or HLB, a bacterial disease vectored by the Asian citrus psyllid. It attacks the vascular system of a tree and can kill it within two years. Citrus greening is endemic to Florida and has reduced production more than 50 per cent over the past decade.
The USDA's estimate of the 2015/16 Florida grapefruit crop decreased 700,000 boxes to 11.5m boxes, and specialty fruit dropped 50,000 boxes to 2.1m.
