{"id":4073,"date":"2026-06-13T15:03:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T15:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4073"},"modified":"2026-06-13T15:03:52","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T15:03:52","slug":"commentary-florida-citrus-is-under-assault-innovation-helps-us-fight-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4073","title":{"rendered":"Commentary: Florida citrus is under assault. Innovation helps us fight back"},"content":{"rendered":"
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My great-grandfather planted his first citrus trees in Florida soil more than a hundred years ago. I\u2019m the fourth generation of my family to produce the crop for which our state is known so well. But a bacterial disease threat will continue to wreak havoc on our groves and give foreign competitors a big advantage unless we act quickly. If we\u2019re not careful, it\u2019s going to be a death sentence for the state\u2019s entire citrus industry.<\/p>\n

Read more Hurricane center continues to track system that could form in Gulf<\/a><\/p>\n

Citrus greening has eviscerated Florida\u2019s citrus production over the past two decades. According to the University of Florida Emerging Pathogens Institute, Florida citrus production has fallen by 94% between the 2003 and 2023 growing seasons. Florida citrus acreage declined from nearly 749,000 acres in 2004 to approximately 275,000 acres in 2024. More than 90% of citrus acreage and over 80% of citrus trees are now affected by the disease.<\/p>\n

Citrus greening has no cure. Once a tree is infected, it\u2019s gone. And the damage goes far beyond the groves themselves. Thousands of acres have been abandoned or sold off, growers and processors have been forced out of business, and the jobs, local economies, and way of life that citrus built in Florida over more than a century are disappearing with them.<\/p>\n

But there is a ray of hope. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently approved CarriCea T1, a first-of-its-kind CRISPR gene-edited citrus rootstock that disrupts how the bacteria interact with the tree without introducing foreign DNA or changing the fruit. It means a tree is better equipped to fight the disease from the inside out. Because the tree itself resists infection, growers can reduce chemical sprays, lower costs, improve working conditions and help stabilize the supply of Florida citrus. With 200,000 CarriCea T1 trees already moving through nursery pipelines, this isn\u2019t a distant promise. It\u2019s within our reach.<\/p>\n

CarriCea T1 is the kind of innovation that\u2019s only accessible when our regulatory agencies are evaluating new science-backed tools and making them commercially available in a timely manner. I\u2019m grateful to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and the scientists at EPA who made that happen. Approval of CarriCea is proof of something important: When the regulatory system functions the way it\u2019s supposed to, American growers win.<\/p>\n

Read more Legislature sweeps Florida Forever funding to rural conservation program<\/a><\/p>\n

But that work can\u2019t stop, or even slow down. The continued availability of innovative pesticides isn\u2019t an abstract policy question. It\u2019s a reality for farmers across this country. Pesticides are difference between a profitable harvest and a devastating loss. It\u2019s food security. It\u2019s the economic sustainability of the men and women who feed this nation, and it\u2019s keeping American agriculture competitive.<\/p>\n

And right now, our competitors aren\u2019t waiting for us. Brazil and other agricultural powerhouses routinely bring new pesticides to market faster than the United States does. That\u2019s not just a farming issue. It\u2019s a national competitiveness issue, one that extends well beyond the field to affect domestic food security, rural economies, and America\u2019s standing in global markets. This competitive gap is costing American growers and American food consumers.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why I\u2019m asking the EPA, lawmakers, and other regulatory agencies to meet their regulatory timelines and provide American farmers with access to the innovative pesticides we need to compete. Innovation is the engine of American agricultural competitiveness, and we cannot afford to let that engine stall. Pests and diseases evolve. If our solutions don\u2019t do the same, we will continue to lose ground we may never get back.<\/p>\n

Read more Fragrance lab opens in Winter Park as perfume category booms<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Paul Meador is the president of Everglades Harvesting in Hendry County.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The EPA recently approved a gene-edited citrus rootstock to slow down citrus greening. Government regulators must encourage innovations of this sort to save the citrus industry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4072,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary","category-opinion"],"yoast_head":"\nCommentary: Florida citrus is under assault. 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