Alico citrus grove Florida

Florida orange production has increased slightly, according to the June forecast by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the US Department of Agriculture, while grapefruit production remained stable.

The June report projects the state’s orange crop to increase by 500,000 boxes to68.5m for the 2016/17 season, while the grapefruit crop held at 7.8m boxes and Tangelos dipped slightly by 10,000 to 1.62m boxes.

“This has been a particularly tough season for Florida citrus growers with greening and other traditional crop challenges,' said Shannon Shepp, executive director of the Florida Department of Citrus. 'An increase in 500,000 boxes could be easily dismissed but in this context it is a celebration and shows that these growers are still fighting with everything they’ve got.'