Citrus industry in Florida - Research Paper Example

?A Research Paper on the Citrus Industry of Florida 0 Introduction Citrus or what is more popularly known as the golden fruit makes for a very profitable industry. This is exemplified by the citrus industry in Florida; this state is one of the major suppliers of citrus in the United States of America (Boriss 2006). Orange juice consumption in Florida is greater than that of other fruits; hence, 95 % of Florida’s orange production is earmarked for orange juice manufacturing (Boriss 2006). This research paper seeks to discuss how the citrus industry of Florida began, and how it was affected by the Big Freeze. 2.0 Florida’s Citrus Industry and the Big Freeze 2.1 The Start of the Citrus Industry Citrus and Florida have become so closely linked that these terms, when processed individually, could conjure the mental image of the other. Hence, it is quite surprising to note that citrus did not originate in Florida but was brought to Florida by Spanish colonists; it was in St. Augustine that the aforementioned colonists planted orange trees (Putnam 2013.). These colonists brought seeds along with them, as it was decreed by Spanish law at that time, for them to be in possession of a hundred seeds (B. Weaver and R. Weaver 1999, 9). Ponce de Leon was the Spanish conqueror specifically attributed with the introduction of the citrus seeds to Florida (Sikes 1960). Due to Florida’s tropical climate and sandy soil, citrus trees grew and flourished (Pittman & Davis 2013). The citrus industry developed, as Florida became part of the territory of the United States in 1822, with the production of two million oranges in a year by St. Augustine (Putnam 2013). In 1823, grapefruit was introduced to Florida by Odet Philippe; it was near Tampa that this French count planted the first grove of grapefruit (Florida’s Citrus Production 2013). 2.2 The Freezes In 1834, citrus groves were being cultivated by farmers, which were interrupted by the occurrence of a freeze in February of 1835 (Florida’s Citrus Production 2013). The freeze, which happened on February of 1835, killed all the fruit trees in St. Augustine as temperature dropped to seven degrees above zero, thus, robbing people of their income (Dobson 2009). The farmers’ recovered production for the succeeding fifty-one years as the state only experienced warm winters; during this time, northeast Florida, as well as St. John’s County, became the hub of citrus supply (Dobson 2009). In the 1890’s, citrus production increased to five million boxes per year due to the demand for the said fruit in the northeast and the existence of rail lines, which promoted long distance shipping of the citrus fruits (About Citrus 2012). In fact, in the year 1894, the shipment of crates of citrus to the north amounted up to 5,000,000 (Dobson 2009). On December of 1894, another freeze happened, killing all of Florida’s orange crops in its wake. On the eighth of February the following year, another freeze came about, bringing about the same disastrous effects; such was its impact that on 1896, Florida was only able to ship a little above 100,000 crates of oranges (Dobson 2009). The freeze caused the abandonment of citrus groves in the North of Florida and the production of melons and potatoes in its place (Dobson 2009). This was the most severe in the history of freezes that Florida had undergone (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). In 1901, there were little above 1,000,000 crates produced (Dobson 2009). In 1917 and 1934, still the state was plagued with the same natural calamity; the freeze of 1934 resulted in the formation of the Federal Frost Warning Service -- a replacement of the train whistles, which warned people of imminent frosts in the previous years (Dobson 2009). The occurrence of continuous freezes in December of 1934, as well as on February of 1935, yielded a negative impact as it reduce production from a million boxes to just below 150,000 boxes of citrus (About Citrus 2013). Again, the farmers planted their citrus crops, yet another freeze took its toll in 1940 (Dobson 2009). In fact, January of 1940 was the coldest in the history of Florida averaging on 49.7 degrees in Fahrenheit, and the freeze, which occurred from the 27th to the 29th of January, yielded the coldest temperatures (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). Another one took place on the 12th up to the 13th of December 1957; this was considered as the most dreadful after what took place in 1940 (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). In addition, the freeze that happened in 1962 caused the worst damage to trees in comparison to all the other freezes that Florida had encountered (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). Even worse was the freeze on January 1977 that “created the rare conditions in Florida for snow to stick to the ground” (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). On the 24th and 25th of December 1893, an even more disastrous freeze happened, as farmers were not aware of the forecast, since the Frost Warning Service failed to deliver it; hence, more damages were done to their crops (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). On the 20th to the 22nd of January 1985, another one came about, having at that time not yet recovered from the previous freeze, farmers suffered even more drastic losses (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). Subsequently, another freeze happened on the 22nd until the 26th of December 1989, which, to put it simply, added insult to injury as it caused even more damage to an already badly beaten up citrus industry (Timeline of Major Florida Freezes 2013). However, as a solution to this natural calamity, citrus groves were planted southward; thus, making recovery possible (Citrus Industry History 2013). 2.3 After the Florida Freezes Since the Big Freeze, Tampa has become one of the primary sources of citrus in Florida (Tampa in the 1940s 2013). In fact, the head office of one of the largest cooperatives of Florida, Florida Citrus Exchange, was built in Tampa and is still in operation since 1909 (Tampa in the 1940s 2013). In fact, many of Florida’s biggest companies producing citrus juices, as well as citrus concentrates, are located in Tampa (Tampa in the 1940s, 2013). Significantly, at present, citrus is being planted by more than 8,000 people and almost 550,000 acres of land cultivated in Florida (Citrus Industry History 2013). In fact, “Nearly 76,000 other people also work in the citrus industry or in related businesses” (Citrus Industry History 2013). The aforementioned citrus industry yields $9.3 billion dollars yearly (Pittman & Davis 2013). 3.0 Conclusion The citrus industry is one that the state of Florida can boast of. Florida is one of the leading suppliers of citrus in the United States. This golden fruit was a gift by Spanish colonizers who were mandated by Spanish law at that time, to carry a hundred seeds; hence, the introduction of the citrus to Florida. Ponce de Leon was the Spanish colonizer recognized foremost as the one responsible for bringing citrus into Florida. The citrus industry grew shortly after its introduction in Florida and production was plentiful. However, subsequent freezes led to the movement of citrus cultivation southward. This said counteraction served beneficial because it paved the way for recovery and led to the rise of Florida’s citrus industry. Today, this industry continues to grow and yield good profit to those who are in the said industry. The citrus industry has become even more popular as highlighted by the number of people involved in the industry or employed in jobs connected to the citrus industry. References About Citrus. 2012. Citrus Resource. http://idtools.org/id/citrus/resource/about_citrus.php. Boriss, Hayley. 2006. "Commodity Profile: Citrus." University of California Agricultural Issues Center. http://aic.ucdavis.edu/profiles/Citrus-2006.pdf. Citrus Industry History. 2013. Florida Citrus Mutual. Accessed March 4, http://flcitrusmutual.com/citrus-101/citrushistory.aspx. Dobson, Geoff. 2009. "Historic City Memories: The Big Freeze II." Historic City News. http://www.historiccity.com/2009/staugustine/news/florida/historic-city-memories-the-big-freeze-ii-2223. Florida's Citrus Production. 2013. Fresh from Florida Plant Industry. http://fldpi.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/floridas-citrus-production-the-long-march-south/. Pittman &Davis. 2013. “The Booming Florida Citrus Industry.” Pittman & Davis. Accessed March 4, http://www.pittmandavis.com/articles/citrus/florida-citrus/the-booming-florida-citrus-industry.html. Fresh from Florida Plant Industry (February 28, 2013). Florida’s Citrus Production: The Long March South. Accessed March 4, http://fldpi.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/floridas-citrus-production-the-long-march-south/ Putnam, Adam. 2013. “This Moment in Florida.” Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Accessed March 4, www.freshfromflorida.com/500years/.../Floridas_Cracker_Cattle.doc. Sikes, John. 1960. “Gold that Grows on Trees.” In Rotarian, ed. J Sikes, P Srivisar, I Ross, GW Harris, & H. Simons, 23-25. USA: The Rotarian. Tampa in the 1940s. 2013. TampaPix. Accessed March 4, http://www.tampapix.com/tampa1940s4.htm. Timeline of Major Florida Freezes. 2013. Florida Citrus Mutual. Accessed March 4, http://flcitrusmutual.com/render.aspx?p=/industryissues/weather/freeze_timeline.aspx. Weaver, Brian and Richard Weaver. 1999. The Citrus Industry in the Sunshine State. South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. Read More