Agriculture

‘We’ve been decimated,’ a longtime Florida tomato grower says about the industry in the Sunshine State.

In what was a major victory for Florida tomato growers, the U.S. Commerce Department announced in April that it would withdraw from the 2019 Tomato Suspension Agreement, beginning July 14. A 20.91% tariff will then be imposed on most tomatoes from Mexico.

The decision suggested that the scale of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign — an issue that is at the heart of his presidency — is hurting industries and constituencies that he does not want to lose.

Officials said that some farmers may have avoided additional devastating losses from Helene, but only because they had not yet replanted after Debby hit just eight weeks before.

President Claudia Sheinbaum pledged to revive government stores and continue efforts to achieve “food sovereignty” to make Mexico capable of producing all the food it eats.

Farming in the Florida Everglades Agricultural requires a delicate touch. The area has lost nearly 6 ft. of soil in the past century through a process called subsidence. One way to slow down this subsidence and preserve the nutrient-rich soil is to flood the area during Florida’s rainy season and use the fields to grow rice.

Two USDA employees were assaulted and temporarily held by assailants in Mexico, prompting the U.S. to suspend inspections of avocado and mango shipments.

Researchers and farmers continue the search for long-term solutions to an insect-spread illness called laurel wilt.

In Marion County, the crash killed eight farmworkers and injured dozens as the workers were traveling in a bus to a farm in Dunnellon.

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension is offering online bilingual workshops to teach the basics of planning, implementing and building a farm operation for newcomers venturing into agriculture.

A statewide grand jury has issued a 146-page report that calls for taking a series of steps to try to curb illegal immigration, saying "it will be up to Florida and other states to help themselves, at least in the short term," as problems go unsolved at the federal level.

Florida's citrus production is expected to improve in the upcoming season compared to last year when twin hurricanes battered the state.