Citrus Breeding Efforts to Solve the Brix Crisis

Abstract

The combination of HLB and Hurricane Ian have made this a disastrous year for Florida citrus, drastically reducing the quantity and quality of processing oranges.  Brix values and yields are the lowest in history.  Early season Hamlin juice of lesser quality is generally blended with late-season Valencia to achieve the target 12 Brix and 15 ratio for quality NFC juice.  This is not possible when the Valencia crop is coming in around 9-10 brix, even from fully mature trees.  The only blending option available to processors this season is to use higher quality imported juice.  This article will discuss new options being developed by the UF-CREC Citrus Breeding Team to permanently solve this growing problem for Florida growers.