The March USDA citrus forecast projected 83.35 million boxes of citrus produced in the state of Florida for 2018-2019.
This is a big uptick from the 49.55 million boxes produced in 2017-2018 after Hurricane Irma devastated citrus production in the state. This forecast is also an increase from the 78.23 million boxes produced prior to the hurricane in 2016-2017.
While this increase may seem minor when compared to the peak Florida citrus production of 244 million boxes in 1997-1998, it is a welcome sign for an industry that has been seeing declining production year after year due to weather events, market trends, and most importantly, citrus greening