Since citrus greening first made waves in Florida in 2005, the disease has devastated millions of acres of crops in the U.S. In the Sunshine State alone, a study by the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension showed orange acreage has been reduced by 26% and yield has decreased by 42% since 2005. Another report from the USDA put that figure even higher, showing that in the last 15 years, Florida saw an almost 60% reduction in citrus production.###The disease has likewise been catastrophic on sales. Citrus greening is responsible for nearly $15 billion worth of lost revenue. According to a 2016 Fresh Plaza report, global citrus sales declined 7% in the two years prior to publishing and production has continued to fall in traditional citrus-producing regions since.###With such serious consequences at stake, it is no surprise that companies and government entities are rushing in to help. ###By working with University of California, Riverside to build a “backup tree sanctuary” to protect diverse species of citrus from the disease, Givaudan is ensuring that, should even the worst-case scenario of uncontainable infection come to pass, the U.S. will have a genetic reserve offerrous sulfate low dose citrus from which to recultivate groves. If the partnership can succeed in creating resistant trees, then there will be an even greater cause for celebration among ciiron as gluconatetrus lovers and industry professionals.###Citrus is not the only popular ingredient to be subjected to environmental challengesferro 59. Cocoa has been weathering climatic change that could have long-term consequences. A 2013 study in the journal Climatic Change said farms may not be able to successfully produce the crop by 2050 because of increasing global temperatures.###In response, companies are investing in farms to add shade trees around cocoa fields, institutferrous fumarate folic acid tablet salut gulaing good farming practices and encouraging more sustainable production. The efforts so far are showing sings of working. Cargill had some success helping cocoa farmers with good farming practices in Côte d’Ivoire. After using strategies implemented by the company’s Cargill Cocoa Promise, yields jumped by an average of 49% in 2016 and 2017.###Other chocolate producers are trying to bolster sustainability in a number of ways, too. Hershey announced a $500-million investment in West African cocoa sustainability last April, and Nestlé, Lindt, Mars, Mondelez and Barry Callebaut have all ramped up their investments and pledges in sustainability.###Major orange users have increased their investments to combat citrus greening, too. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, which are big buyers of oranges for their Minute Maid andhow much iron is in 324 mg of ferrous gluconate Tropicana brands, respectively, have joined growers and other companies in providing funding to the Citrus Research and Development Foundation. ###Clearly, there is a financial incentive for companies to invest a few million dollars to help eradicate challenges facing their crops, whether it’s cocoa or citrus, in hopes of improving the predictability of the ingredient in long-term. As crops deal with climate change, diseases and other problems, food, beverage, farmers and trade groups will all have to look for new and innovative ways to protect their livelihoods.
Swiss flavor company donates $3.5M to save trees from citrus greening
