Florida citrus receives $84m in government funds
“We are so pleased with the appropriations for 2017 and that our most critical programs are being funded,” Sparks said Wednesday. “We had a very successful year, a very difficult year, and I’m so happy with how well the Florida citrus industry did and how our legislators went to bat for us.”
The proposed state budget includes $8 million to the Citrus Research and Development Foundation Inc. in Lake Alfred for scientific research into the bacterial disease citrus greening, which threatens the future of commercial citrus in Florida. That’s similar to what the foundation received in the past several years.
Another $7 million will go to the Citrus Health Response Program, a joint state-federal effort to help growers deal with greening and other pests and diseases.
The budget also includes $4 million in general revenue for marketing programs at the Florida Department of Citrus, a state agency that promotes orange juice and other Florida citrus products and $7.5 million for a federal multi-agency task force funding greening research, he said.
“I represent the largest citrus-producing district in the country, and my growers have experienced firsthand how greening disease decimates Florida’s citrus industry,” said Rooney, who sits on the House Appropriations Committee and its Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee.
“This $61 million investment is urgently needed to sustain progress on research and development of a cure for citrus greening and to prevent the American citrus industry from becoming extinct,” he said. “In Florida, and especially my district, citrus isn’t just a crop, it’s a way of life.”
source: newschief.com