FEBRUARY 13, 2006

ISSUE 1102

USDA ANNOUNCES $100 MILLION FOR CANKER COMPENSATION

 

USDA announced Thursday (February 9) that it would make available $100 million for citrus growers who lost their trees due to eradication efforts. With Thursday's announcement, USDA has earmarked a total of approximately $436 million for compensation to producers affected by this disease.

 

Meanwhile, USDA is working with state and federal scientists, regulators and others to develop the new Citrus Health Response Plan (CHRP), which will address several issues: production, harvesting, budwood/nursery, residential and transportation.

 

"The focus now is to determine how much canker we’re actually dealing with - how much was spread by the hurricanes," said FFVA President Mike Stuart, who attended the Citrus Canker Technical Advisory Task Force meeting Tuesday (February 7), where the CHRP program was announced. Once that is determined, the data can be incorporated into the CHRP report due in early March. The deadline is to ensure that the Florida Legislature can take up the issue, including repealing the 1,900-foot exposure law.

 

“The priority is to be able to provide scientific assurances that growers can ship asymptomatic fruit out of the state,” Stuart said.

 

USDA withdrew funding for canker eradication January 10, saying the program would not be successful after hurricanes spread the bacteria to unforeseen levels. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said it was discontinuing the tree-cutting program February 2.