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USDA’s ’07-’08 Orange Crop Estimate Remains the Same

Contact: Andrew Meadows at (863) 682-1111 or (cell) (863) 944-4924
For Immediate Release:

LAKELAND, Fla. (May 9, 2008) – Florida’s 2007-2008 orange crop estimate remained the same at 168.5 million boxes, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) which today released a revised citrus forecast.

“This remains a good sized crop for the Florida citrus industry,” said Michael W. Sparks, executive vice president/CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual. “Prices to growers are a bit lower than we expected and that has us concerned. We need higher prices to offset the increased production costs associated with pest and disease management and energy prices.”

The 168.5 million boxes are made up of 80.5 million boxes of Early-Mids, 3.0 million boxes of Navels and 85 million boxes of Valencias.

The Florida citrus industry saw a decline in orange production from 230 million boxes to 129 million boxes during the five-year period between the 2001-2002 season and the 2006-2007 season. This reduction was due in large part to the effects of hurricanes, development and pests and diseases such as citrus canker and greening.

A 168.5 million box orange crop would represent about a 31 percent increase from the 2006-2007 season. The USDA issues its initial estimate in October and then revises it each month through the end of the citrus season in July.

In today’s revised estimate, Florida grapefruit increased from 24.5 million boxes to 26.3 million boxes. Tangelos remained unchanged at 1.5 million boxes and tangerines increased from 4.8 million boxes to 5.3 million boxes.

The complete USDA crop forecast is available from the Florida Agriculture Statistics Service online at http://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Florida/ Publications/Citrus/cpfp.htm.

Founded in 1948 and currently representing nearly 8,000 grower members, Florida Citrus Mutual is the state’s largest citrus growers’ organization. For more information, please visit www.flcitrusmutual.com.
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