ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — This year's Florida orange crop is approaching the fruit's lowest harvest in decades, and experts say a deadly bacteria that's infecting the trees is to blame.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday released its citrus production forecast and the news isn't good. The 2013-2014 orange forecast is 110 million boxes, down 4 percent from last month, and 18 percent less than last season's final production figure.
Orange harvesting ends in June, and if the crop doesn't decline further, it will barely exceed the 110.2 million orange boxes harvested in 1989-90 following the worst freeze in Florida citrus history.
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