Pests drive Fla. oranges to worst slump in decades

摘要

Florida's orange harvest is expected to hit its lowest point since 1964 as a tiny, marauding winged insect spreads bacteria that kill citrus groves. University of Florida researchers estimate the state's $10.7 billion citrus industry has lost more than 7,500 jobs and $7.8 billion since the bacterium that causes Huanglongbing, or citrus "greening," was found in southern Florida in 2005, spread by Asian citrus psyllids. According to the Department of Agriculture, production of oranges -- Florida's signature fruit -- is down 24 percent from last year, the fourth consecutive annual decline. Frozen concentrated orange juice commodity prices are surging, raising costs for Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo. Inc., the makers of Minute Maid, Tropicana and Gatorade, just as coconut water and other alternatives are cutting demand for the United States' top-selling juice.