Florida citrus growers just wrapped their smallest harvest in more than 100 years, according to new data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For the 2024-25 growing season, the USDA reported a 32.7% drop in orange production and a 27.4% decline in grapefruit output compared to last year. In total, growers produced 14.52 million boxes of citrus—the lowest total since the 1919-20 season, when just under 14 million boxes were harvested.

To put that in perspective: Florida was producing more than 250 million boxes a year in the early 2000s, before citrus greening disease began ravaging groves.

Multiple factors have hammered the industry. Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton battered groves in 2024. Meanwhile, citrus greening—a bacterial disease that weakens and kills citrus trees—continues to devastate crops statewide.

Decades of rapid population growth and development have also chipped away at citrus acreage as groves give way to homes and businesses.

In response, state lawmakers approved $124.5 million in aid this year to help growers bounce back. The funding will support new disease-resistant trees, grove management programs, and recovery tools.

Florida Senate President Ben Albritton, a citrus grower himself, said the state is standing with the industry.  “We hear them. We see them. We know they are important to the state of Florida,” he said. “Citrus is important to the DNA of the state.”

Florida’s citrus season typically runs from October through June, with hopes that this round of aid can help turn the corner for future harvests.

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(Image credit: CBS News)

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