Citrus Comeback Tool

This week, a major development for citrus growers across the Southeast. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved a new citrus rootstock called CarriCea T1 to help combat citrus greening, the disease that has devastated orchards for years.

The impact has been severe. Florida’s citrus production has fallen more than 90 percent over the past two decades. At its peak, growers produced nearly 292 million boxes. Today, that number is just over 12 million, the smallest harvest in more than a century, according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Instead of relying only on sprays, this approach works from inside the tree. CarriCea T1 rootstock makes precise edits to the citrus tree’s own genes, without adding DNA from other organisms. Those edits interrupt how the bacteria behind greening infect the plant, helping the tree slow the disease on its own.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin says, “CarriCea T1 helps protect American citrus and lets growers rely less on conventional pesticide applications.”

EPA says it also understands consumers want transparency. Shoppers will continue to have options, including organic citrus, as this new tool rolls out.

For more, visit https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/new-citrus-tool-help-prevent-widespread-loss-citrus-crops-and-support-americas-food-0