Fewer Acres, More Production for Florida Citrus

We’re talking citrus today in your agriculture news. The USDA recently put out the annual Commercial Citrus Inventory report for Florida and it showed a whopping 17% drop from the last survey as far as acreage. Total citrus acreage in the state is now at 274,705 acres. That’s an overarching trend for the industry. Diving into the sectors, orange acreage is down 18%, grapefruit has seen a 10% drop in acreage, and specialty fruit acreage is 6% lower.

Hendry County was in the lead for losses, down just over 12,000 acres from the previous season. At 58,516 acres, Polk County continues to lead citrus acreage with Desoto County in a close second.

That’s the stark reality news. On the flip side, the Citrus Summary Production, Price, and Value Production by County report shows that production is up despite the reduced acres and, drum roll, so is value.

The $221 million preliminary on-tree value of the ’23-24 citrus crop is 6% more than the revised value for last year. All citrus production in the state for the current season is up 12% from the last season.