Letter to Sonny Perdue, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture - Reps. Yoho, Soto Call on USDA to Stabilize Florida Orange Juice Market

Letter

Dear Secretary Perdue,

We urge the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), through the Agriculture Marketing Service or the Trade Mitigation program, to fully and fairly consider increasing the funding allocation for orange juice purchase to $90 million dollars.[1] On July 25, 2019, the USDA, through the Agriculture Marketing Service, announced up to $47 million for distribution to various food nutrition assistance programs.[2]

We should fight to protect Florida's signature agriculture crop: orange juice. Florida's orange juice inventory increased significantly and unexpectedly after the devastation of Hurricane Irma. However, because the processors entered into agreements with international orange juice companies, the domestic supply substantially exceeds the projected need, forcing extreme downward pressure on prices for growers. The Florida Department of Citrus projects an average price of $1.62 per pound solid for oranges picked through March, which is nearly a dollar less from the 2017-2018 average price of $2.59 per pound solids.[3]

After many years of setbacks in the orange juice industry due to citrus greening and hurricanes, it is uniquely important to protect growers this year. Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter

Sincerely,