Florida Farmers Struggle — And The Reasons Why Are Complex
"Florida freezes." by thompsonwood is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.
May 13, 20263 hours
Carolyn Fortuna
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In early February 2026, Florida experienced a rare and historic multi-day freeze — it broke cold weather records across the state. From the Everglades agricultural area to central and southern parts of the state, Florida farmers faced plummeting temperatures, crop damage, and significant operational challenges. The cold weather in February cost the Florida citrus industry alone almost $700 million, according to the state agricultural commission.
For many farmers, these numbers represent years of lost efforts. Florida state leaders, who disavow the term “climate change,” say they’re helping with recovery options and available federal assistance.
I took an early morning drive this week to Nelson’s Family Farm, known as our area’s premier local produce market. As I walked through the aisles and felt the breezes wafting through the open air structure, I saw a sign posted in each section. “Dear Valued Customers,” it began. “As you know, Florida experienced a full freeze in February. Farmers lost their crops and immediately replanted. We thank you for your patience while we wait for the new harvests.”
Many prices of local produce items for sale were double what they had been just a couple of weeks ago. The freeze stands among the most damaging weather events in state history for growers.
Florida farmers, many of whom are small family operations that stretch back to the founding of the state’s agricultural business, are now dealing with the fallout. During the two nights of wind chill in the twenties, 66 counties experienced a freeze. Initial projections indicate over $3 billion in losses for the state. Following calls from Florida’s delegation in Congress, the US Department of Agriculture issued a disaster declaration for 26 Florida counties, including St. Lucie, where I live.
When the freeze hit, an estimated 80% of blueberry producers chose to run water over their bushes to protect them. The intensity and duration of the cold caused the water to ice over entirely, snapping the bushes under the weight. Many blueberry growers lost this year’s crop as well as the bushes that would yield future years’ harvests.
It’s One Thing After Another For Small Farmers
The freeze was devastating. But there are more variables that are adding to the stress that Florida farmers are experiencing.
According to the most recent statistics, 86% of farmers in the US run small family farms, defined as having a gross income of $350,000 a year or less. The majority of those farms have high risk profit margins of 10% or less.
Florida farmers are experiencing steep price hikes in essential supplies like fertilizer and diesel fuel since the beginning of the US/Israel war with Iran. The price increases involve a 33% rise in fertilizer costs and fuel prices climbing above $5 per gallon. Then there’s nitrogen, a critical fertilizer for farmers. About one-third of the world’s supply flows through the Strait of Hormuz, which is currently in flux amid stalled negotiations. Some Florida farmers must buy diesel fuel in small batches, far less than their actual capacity, which means holding only a limited amount of fuel on hand.
The war’s effects are hammering down in spring — planting season. And they were already struggling before the Iran war.
The Trump administration’s tariffs, and other countries’ retaliatory measures that followed, have decimated the export markets on which farmers depend. The consequences are significant losses for small farmers. Many say they’ve never seen prices fluctuate as wildly as they are now.
Growers, who are already at the breaking point, are having a hard time keeping up with shifting federal aid rules. According to David Lott, who co-founded Crop Disaster Recovery with his wife, Kimberly, relief may take longer to arrive than many growers expect. “It’s pretty typical that it takes a while for a specific disaster to be addressed by one of these programs,” Lott told Central Florida Agricultural News. “A couple of years is not unusual.”
Case Study: The Demise Of Florida’s Citrus Industry
When I was a child, a vacationing uncle sent my family a box of Indian River grapefruit each winter. It was such a juicy and delicious treat! Oranges and grapefruit were grown by the billions; it seemed so decadent. Who would’ve guessed then that, years later, I would be residing in the same region that grew the iconic citrus?
A lot has changed for Florida farmers over those decades, though.
Thirty years ago, 225 million boxes of oranges were picked from Florida orange groves. This year, the forecast from the US Agriculture Department is about 12 million boxes, or a plummet of 95% in one generation. Twenty-five years ago, almost half of the orange juice produced worldwide was from US-grown fruit, primarily with its origins in Florida. Today, Brazil controls about 70% of the global orange juice production, and the U.S. has only 6%. Citrus and vegetable crops also took heavy hits, and even cattle producers are spending far more on feed because of the combined freeze and drought.
Florida is in the midst of its worst drought in 25 years. Citrus greening disease is worse than ever, reducing crop yield to a mere fraction of what it was just 20 years ago. And then there’s the citrus greening, in which the Florida orange is green now because of bacteria. Add to it citrus canker and citrus black spot, and growers are really, really worried.
Hurricanes that had once-upon-a-time rarely made landfall near orange groves shook the trees violently on their shallow roots in 2017. The stress of the high winds on already weakened root systems has traumatized the trees, some permanently.
Where Can Florida Farmers Find Relief?
Steve Crump, who runs Vo-LaSalle Farms and has been a grapefruit grower for 35 years, told NPR that he swears his current crop is “some of the best” he’s ever grown: best flavor, best looking, hands down. And to what does he attribute these accolades?
He now grows his grapefruit inside an enclosed environment — a screen house with sides and a roof that’s constructed with a lot of screen. It works because it keeps the psyllid insect that’s spreading greening disease separate from the growing citrus. The cost for such a structure might be prohibitive, though, for many small farmers: about $1 a square foot, or about $43,000 to $45,000 an acre.
And it’s not hurricane-proof. The strongest storms are getting stronger, and they bring with them the most damaging winds. High winds ravage the roof and take several weeks to fix. Those holes allow insects to find their way in.
Crump argues that a better solution is a grapefruit tree that’s resistant or tolerant to the citrus greening disease. He’s waited, and waited, and waited. Fifteen years have passed without a breakthrough.
Final Thoughts
People in Florida will experience increased risks from heat, precipitation, and flood due to climate change over the next 30 years. These risks, through 2050 and beyond, may change depending on how much we reduce emissions in the near future.
What’s shocking is that Florida’s Republican-led state government is proud of its ban that prohibits its cities, towns, and counties from adopting or implementing “net-zero policies.” It includes comprehensive plans, land development regulations, transportation plans, or any other government policy or procedure. In addition, it would forbid government entities from paying dues to groups that promote net-zero policies and from implementing cap-and-trade systems to limit carbon emissions.
A push to empower the agricultural industry with clean energy solutions would’ve helped a lot, but, to add to the misery, the Trump administration has rejected nearly all renewable projects, leading to a 17% decline last year in all clean technology investment in the US. Tom Steyer, candidate for governor of California, says voters’ top concern is affordability, and the fastest way to lower their bills is by embracing clean energy. “We should be make decisions based on the economics and the science,” Steyer told the New York Times in an interview, “and the economics and the science dictate moving toward clean sustainable energy that’s cheaper.”
Florida politicians aren’t so quick to jump on the clean and green farm wagon. They’re failing the very demographic that put them in office, and it’s hard to figure why.
Resources
“A warming planet makes Nor’easters and other storms more intense: Climate scientist Michael Mann.” Amy Goodman. Democracy Now. February 24, 2026.
“Florida farmers struggle to adapt as disease and climate take toll on citrus industry.” Tom Hudson. NPR. May 10, 2026.
“Florida farmers struggle with skyrocketing fertilizer and fuel prices.” Jake Jordan, WFTV.com. March 22, 2026.
“From freeze to funding.” Rebekah Pierce. Central Florida Agricultural News. March 12, 2026.
“Governor Ron DeSantis signs legislation to eliminate local DEI programs and block carbon raxes in Florida.” Executive Office of the Governor. April 22 2026.
“Tom Steyer’s climate politics are focused on prices.” David Gelles. New York Times. May 12, 2026.
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