Grove Notes

George Scales, an inspirational leader and friend of the Florida Citrus Industry.

2008-04-21T14:27:00.006-04:00

WEIRSDALE — George Scales' love for family, citrus and sports ran as deep as his five-generation roots in Marion County soil.

Is premium orange juice worth the wallet squeeze?

2008-04-12T23:27:00.002-04:00

TODAY
updated 11:45 a.m. ET April 11, 2008

Curious what “premium” and “super-premium” mean when it comes to orange juice? Does it mean they taste better, help you perform better or are they just a marketing gimmick? Cook's Illustrated deciphers packaging labels and investigates which brands are actually worth the extra costs:

Citrus Growers' Views on Tax Sought

2008-01-20T09:59:00.000-05:00

Commission chief wants opinions about agency's continued power to levy fee.

LAKELAND | Chairman Benny Albritton Jr. wants to give Florida citrus "stakeholders" - growers, juice processors and fresh fruit packers - a voice on whether the Florida Citrus Commission should retain its taxing power.

Citrus crops spared from Florida deep freeze

2008-01-08T18:13:00.000-05:00

Updated Thu. Jan. 3 2008 Florida's citrus crops were spared from a deep freeze even as the state shivered under unseasonably low temperatures and flurries on Thursday.

Queen of the Oranges

2007-12-29T09:19:00.000-05:00

Marketplace Middle East talks to Amina al-Amrani, one of the top wholesale fruit sellers in Yemen.

At 88, fruit grower Neal Dudley still enjoys working in his groves and chatting with

2007-11-26T11:08:00.000-05:00

WEIRSDALE — It seems anyone across the nation can buy a real Florida orange these days.

In fact, in New York City, people who visit Times Square Plaza through Saturday will be greeted by several video spots promoting “Fresh from Florida” agricultural products on the CBS “Super Screen.”

Eight million pounds of citrus will crisscross the country

2007-11-21T08:40:00.000-05:00

The first cartons of gift fruit for the winter holidays rolled out of a west Orlando distribution center last week, the start of a tidal wave of 8 million pounds of Florida fruit that will flow to homes and offices across the country for the next few months.

Florida's Natural(R) Premium Brand Orange Juice ... From Florida and Only Florida

2007-11-15T22:48:00.000-05:00

LAKE WALES, Fla., Nov. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Parents across America are
paying closer attention to what their families eat and drink. So, they may
be surprised to learn that even something as wholesome and American as
not-from- concentrate orange juice is now being imported to your family's
breakfast table.

Fresh from Florida hits Times Square

2007-11-13T22:51:00.001-05:00

New York City's "Big Apple" will soon have some culinary company — namely citrus, tropicals, and other fruits and vegetables that are "Fresh from Florida."

Visitors to Times Square Plaza during the bustling holiday shopping season will get a virtual taste of these fresh Florida favorites when they view the CBS "Super Screen" at 42nd Street between Seventh and Eight avenues.

The Orange Diaries

2007-11-09T23:00:00.000-05:00

Yes, another crate arrived. It occurred to me last night that it’s possible I’m the target of an elaborate hoax. Perhaps one of those reality prank shows waiting for me to jump around in anger and make a fool of myself. Well, all I can say is, keep waitin’ buddy. It takes more than a crate of non-Florida imported oranges to rattle Ol’ Dave. Frustrate, yes. But rattle, no. Oh, and anyone remember tetherball?

Florida's Natural launching campaign against imported orange juice

2007-11-09T13:36:00.001-05:00

Florida was the undisputed leader in oranges and orange juice for more than a century before Brazil claimed the title not that many years ago. But next week a big Florida-grower owned juice cooperative is taking on the multibillion dollar imported-juice industry with a brash TV campaign.

OJ Farm Price Forecast Is Good

2007-11-03T22:00:00.000-04:00

But the outlook for the state's grapefruit growers is not as positive. LAKELAND | Florida orange growers can expect another good year for farm prices in the 2007-08 Florida citrus season, although down slightly from last season's record prices.

But grapefruit growers could leave some 2 million boxes on the tree this season because prices offered by the state's juice processors will be less than the cost of harvesting, according to Mark Brown, the chief economist for the Florida Department of Citrus.

US: Citrus harvesting season gaining speed

2007-11-02T23:25:00.000-04:00

With Tropical Storm Noel on a track to spare Florida a late season slap, the state's citrus growers, juice processors and fresh-fruit shippers celebrated Monday as the harvesting season gains speed.

"Thank goodness," said Donna Garren , executive vice president of the Florida Gift Shippers Association, based in Orlando. The association's 50 members statewide start shipping seasonal fruit varieties such as navel oranges and grapefruit on Nov. 14, and the gift-fruit holiday shipping peaks in late December.

Blossom Is Back On Citrus

2007-10-30T14:07:00.000-04:00

Citrus is Polk County's past. Much of the value of Polk was built upon citrus groves - and the picking and packing and processing that went with it.

In recent times, freezes, canker and greening - not to mention the side effects of hurricanes - have done their best to make this an agribusiness whose time has passed us by.

Grilling Citrus from The Food Network

2007-10-28T09:39:00.000-04:00

FLORIDA CITRUS INDUSTRY CONTINUES ITS COMEBACK

2007-10-13T16:17:00.000-04:00

BARTOW --
The Florida citrus industry is on the rebound after taking a hard hit from devastating hurricanes and diseases.

In the citrus crop forecast for the 2007-2008 season, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated Florida growers will produce 168 million boxes of oranges, up 30 percent from last year's 129 million boxes.

Citrus production forecast to increase

2007-10-13T16:08:00.001-04:00

ARCADIA -- The orange crop forecast is in, and experts think it may be 30 percent higher than last year's totals.

Wrinkle-Proof Your Skin With Vitamin C?

2007-10-10T06:53:00.000-04:00

(WebMD) An orange a day may keep the wrinkles away.

In one of the first studies to examine the impact of nutrients from foods rather than supplements on skin aging, researchers reported that people who ate plenty of vitamin C-rich foods had fewer wrinkles than people whose diets contained little of the vitamin.

Old Florida ranching family faces New Florida challenges

2007-10-09T08:53:00.000-04:00

The Seminole Indians are their neighbors to the south, and cowboys still herd the 1,200 Brangus cattle that roam their property.

That much hasn't changed since the 1930s, when the late J.W. McDaniel founded a family dynasty on an isolated 6-square-mile ranch in southeastern Hendry County.

Don't weep: Not too late for a reshape

2007-09-22T22:43:00.000-04:00

Miner management

Q: We have a 2-year-old orange tree that hasn't grown much. When it does grow, the leaves turn yellow, develop brown spots and shrivel. What can I do?

Citrus Will Get $4 Mil. for Research

2007-09-22T11:36:00.001-04:00

Florida citrus growers received almost all of their $5 million request for research funds to combat citrus canker and greening. But $13 million to the Florida Department of Citrus for advertising was denied. The final 2007-08 state budget the Legislature worked up late Monday night includes $4 million for canker and greening research, the industry's top legislative priority this year, said Mike Sparks, the chief executive of Lakeland-based Florida Citrus Mutual, the state's largest growers' representative.

Polk Is Still on Top In Citrus Production

2007-09-22T11:33:00.000-04:00

LAKELAND | Polk County continued for another season as the state's top citrus-producing county with almost 22.4 million boxes of oranges, grapefruit, tangerines and specialty citrus fruit, according to the preliminary 2006-07 Citrus Summary released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Oranges And Education

2007-09-22T11:32:00.000-04:00

Florida State University finally got around to giving a well-deserved honor to a former faculty member who taught at the college for nearly 40 years - but almost ended her college carrier before it started because her family back in Winter Haven couldn't afford the $200 for her room and board.

Growers, packers learn how to spot citrus diseases

2007-09-14T08:59:00.000-04:00

FORT PIERCE — Groover Smith held a grapefruit in one hand and peered at an ugly canker lesion through a magnifying glass held in the other.

"We don't see it at the packinghouse," said Smith, a quality manager at the Oslo Citrus Growers Association in Vero Beach.

A STATE OF BEE-ING

2007-09-13T10:33:00.000-04:00

"The murmuring of innumerable bees," Alfred Lord Tennyson called it - the music of farmer love.

You're more reliant on the dwindling population of pesky buzzers for your food than you know