Looking to offer Florida’s citrus industry relief in the wake of citrus greening, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., proposed a measure giving tax incentives to farmers who need to replace trees impacted by the disease.
Buchanan’s office explained the congressman’s “Emergency Citrus Disease Response Act” on Friday.
“Under current law, growers are allowed an immediate deduction for the cost of replanting diseased trees, but the farmer must bear the full cost,” Buchanan’s office noted. “Buchanan’s proposal would allow struggling farmers to use this deduction even if they bring in investors to raise capital for replanting costs, as long as the grower continues to own a major stake in the grove. It also extends this incentive to purchasers of land with diseased trees.”
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee which Buchanan sits on.
“This commonsense legislation makes it less costly for citrus farmers to replant crops decimated by disease," said Buchanan. “I’m especially pleased that a dozen of my colleagues from Florida joined me to help protect the livelihoods of the 76,000 Floridians directly and indirectly employed by the citrus industry.”
The bill is being co-sponsored by Florida Republicans U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Ander Crenshaw, Carlos Curbelo, Mario Diaz-Balart, David Jolly, Tom Rooney, Dennis Ross and Ted Yoho and Florida Democrats U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor, Alcee Hastings, Patrick Murphy and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
The citrus industry cheered Buchanan’s bill, including Michael Sparks, the executive vice president and CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual.
“As our production continues to drop, the Florida citrus industry is in a crisis situation,” Sparks insisted. “To counter the losses and revitalize the state’s signature industry, growers need to put more than 20 million trees into the ground over the next decade...the tax measure put forth by Congressman Buchanan will go a long way to getting us there.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released a forecast last month indicating a major drop in orange production in Florida.
“The United States' all orange forecast for the 2015-2016 season is 5.77 million tons, down 10 percent from the 2014-2015 final utilization,” NASS noted last month. “The Florida all orange forecast, at 80 million boxes (3.60 million tons), is down 17 percent from last season’s final utilization. Early, midseason, and Navel varieties in Florida are forecast at 40 million boxes (1.80 million tons), down 16 percent from last season’s final utilization. The Florida Valencia orange forecast, at 40 million boxes (1.80 million tons), is down 19 percent from last season’s final utilization.”
The one bright spot for Florida’s citrus industry was an increase in frozen orange juice.
“Florida frozen concentrated orange juice (FCOJ) yield forecast for the 2015-2016 season is 1.61 gallons per box at 42 degrees Brix, up 7 percent from last season’s final yield of 1.50 gallons per box,” NASS noted in its projections.
The decline in Florida citrus in recent years is mostly the result of Huanglongbing (HLB), better known as citrus greening.
Spread by the Asian citrus psyllid, a tiny insect, citrus greening infects trees, leading to deformed and bitter fruit. Eventually, citrus greening kills the tree. One of the few ways to fight citrus greening is by removing the tree.
In 2013, the Florida citrus industry -- which generates $9 billion and employs more than 75,000 Floridians -- saw its worst year in almost a quarter century. Earlier this year, the USDA awarded $30 million to fight citrus greening and, back in April, launched a project with an additional $23 million in grants to fight citrus greening.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
