In this report, dates and details of two summer gatherings for citrus growers. First will be Florida Citrus Mutual’s Annual Conference June 11 - 13 at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa in Bonita Springs, FL. Then in August the “World’s Premiere Citrus Expo” August 20 and 21, 2008 at Lee Civic Center, Ft Myers, FL. Find all the details on Citrus Expo at www.CitrusExpo.net. 
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In these reports, comments from University of Florida Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC)Director Dr Harold Browning (in photo), about Citrus Expo grower seminar planning currently underway. Browning is a member of the Citrus Expo Steering Committee. The committee met today in Sebring to continue the Citrus Expo seminar plannning process.
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The theme “Seeking Profitability Through Interim Innovations” aptly describes the mood of growers and industry as the seminars program for Citrus Expo August 20 & 21, 2008 begins to come together. Steering Committee members will soon have a list of seminar titles to consider from earlier group and grower input, and growers around the state are encouraged to discuss their seminar wants and needs with a committee member from their area.
Here is the very latest information on Citrus Expo 2008 Exhibitors & Sponsors (pdf file) and the Trade Show Floorplan.
The Steering Committee is also about to publish a long list of seminar topics to distribute around the industry for discussion. Please see a Steering Committee member in your area if you would like to have input on the 2008 Citrus Expo seminar programs.
At a meeting in recent days in Sebring, members of the Citrus Expo 2008 Steering Committee got down to the business of planning grower seminars for this year’s August 20 & 21 event at Lee Civic Center in Ft Myers. Once again Citrus Expo plans to go the extra mile in obtaining input from growers and representatives from Gulf, Highlands and Peace River Citrus Growers Association, working with IFAS to assemble the two-days of seminars at the direction of the committee. 
Growers mark your calendars and stay tuned to this website, Southeast AgNet Radio Network and the pages of Citrus Industry Magazine in coming months as we bring you updates and new things to look forward to at this year’s Citrus Expo. In these reports, Citrus Expo Steering Committee members Tim Spann of UF/IFAS/CREC and Ray Royce of Highlands County CGA comment on seminar development concepts and expectations so far. Report (2:00 mp3) Report (2:00 mp3)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – January 28, 2008
CITRUS EXPO EXHIBITOR SIGN UP AT RECORD PACE – PROGRAM PLANNING BEGINS!
Exhibitor reservations for the 17th annual Citrus Expo August 20 & 21, 2008 at Lee Civic Center Ft. Myers are well ahead of schedule even before initial exhibitor brochures have been distributed. More than half of the available exhibit spaces have been reserved months earlier than at anytime in history.
Meanwhile, Citrus Expo Steering Committee members are seeking grower input (see end of this post for list of committee members) (more…)
In the first report, an overview of efforts underway to deal with “Free Riders”, who many believe unfairly benefit from Florida citrus marketing efforts without joining Florida growers to pay for it all. Comments from Citrus Commissioner Bob Behr (top right), from an earlier interview about “Free Riders.” In the second report, core members of the Citrus Expo planning committee gathered Tuesday in Lakeland to review the 2007 event and lay groundwork for the next Citrus Expo to be held August 20 & 21, 2008 at Lee Civic Center, Ft Myers. Expo Planning Committee member, Director Dr Harold Browning of UF’s Citrus Research and Education Center, comments on Expo successes Citrus Expo and plans for 2008. By the way, we are serious about Citrus Expo Seminars being ‘driven by growers and facilitated by UF/IFAS’ so if you’re a grower and have an idea for a needed seminar topic at Citrus Expo 2008, please E-mail me at gary@southeastagnet.com and your idea will be considered. Report (2:00 mp3) Report (2:00 mp3)
Andrew Beattie from University of Western Sydney in New South Wales Australia was among numerous presenters at Citrus Expo recently. We caught up with him after his talk for a brief but interesting review of the history of the movement of citrus “greening” disease around the world. Hear his comments in this report.
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As requested by a number of people, here is a link to many of the presentation materials from this year’s Citrus Expo seminars.
Citrus Expo The Florida Dept of Citrus (FDOC) booth at Citrus Expo this year was set up to provide growers with information. In the first report, FDOC marketing efforts and the science behind them is explored. In the second report, what is ‘in store’ for retail marketing of Florida citrus products for the coming year.
FDOC Provides Growers with Information Report (2:00 mp3)
FDOC Targeting Retailers Report (1:45 mp3)
If you’ve been looking for Citrus Expo updates this week, sorry about the time lag. Fact is, we’ve had little time to post the news. A record breaking crowd of more than 1750 people were on Expo grounds the first day, with day two attracting about 1,100, including growers, speakers and 150 exhibitors. It’s been busy. Broadcasts from Expo earlier this week, now posted below, include discussions of recent crop forecasts and USDA’s official crop forecast upcoming, and news from the New Varieties Development and Management Corporation (NVDMC). In other posts yet to come, Citrus Department updates from Citrus Expo and more.
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Citrus Expo brings citrus growers and industry leaders from all around Florida and around the world to Ft Myers, FL this week. Wednesday night, a Gulf Citrus Growers’ Association banquet in downtown Ft Myers will feature Congressman Tim Mahoney. Hear more in these reports.
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Sponsoring this news posting: 
and 
Find information at USDA’s Website About the Citrus Health Response Program
Citrus Expo has smashed all pre-registration records of its 16 year history with well over 600 growers pre-registering for this year’s event Wednesday and Thursday at Lee Civic Center in Ft Myers. Commercial citrus growers are still welcome to attend and register at the door, and hundreds more are expected to do so. The seminar hall has been enlarged with theatre seating arranged for a larger crowd, and more than 150 exhibitors will pack the trade show. Registration is free for commercial citrus growers, grove managers, owners and industry leaders, doors open at 8:00 a.m. both days of the show.
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Sponsoring this news posting: and
Find information at USDA’s Website About the Citrus Health Response Program
Citrus Expo 2007 expects to host the largest crowd of commercial citrus growers EVER in its 16-year history. Two days of intensive seminars will focus on ‘greening’ and ‘canker’ updates and information from around the world, and the trade show is sold out with what is also believed to be the largest exhibitor turnout ever, with more than 150 companies to be on display. Hear more details in these reports, and in the second report below, hear about new technology from Syngenta that will make grove scouting recordkeeping far easier.
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Sponsoring this news posting: and
Find information at USDA’s Website About the Citrus Health Response Program
Citrus Expo is a private industry two-day seminar and trade show program for commercial citrus growers, grove owners, managers and industry leaders. It is set for Wednesday and Thursday, August 22 & 23, 2007 in Ft Myers. Hear more general details in report one posted below. In the second report, Dr Bill Castle at University of Florida’s Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred says day two of the seminars should have some valuable production tips regarding future grove designs and production systems applications.
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Sponsoring this news posting: and
Pre-register for Seminars and Trade Show attendance at
Find information at USDA’s Website About the Citrus Health Response Program
One of the bigger issues still looming over citrus and vegetable industries is the availability of sufficient farm labor when farmers need it the most. 
Regardless of what Congress may or may not do about immigration laws, H2A programs will continue to allow farmers to access foreign labor. Although the program is complex, H2A-USA is a company set up to help farmers simplify the process a great deal. In these reports President/CEO Mike Nobles explains why his customers like the service, and why he believes the H2A program will be around for a long time to come. Nobles and several of his H2A-USA team will be on hand at Citrus Expo to meet with growers and answer questions.
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Pre-register for Seminars and Trade Show attendance at
An expert in H2A Labor access for agricultural producers says lots of farmers are confused about how H2A workers CAN in fact work in the same fields as traditional workers without equal pay requirements. Mike Nobles is President and CEO of H2A-USA, a firm that cuts through the confusion of H2A rules to help farmers get the labor they need, when they need it. Hear his comments about the FACTS of this issue in this report, and meet Nobles and the rest of the H2A-USA team at Citrus Expo in Ft. Myers August 22 & 23.
Report (2:00 mp3)
Pre-register for Seminars and Trade Show attendance at
Southeast AgNet will soon have to say farewell to a young lady we all think the world of around here. Katherine Bush started at Southeast AgNet as a legislative news intern in Tallahassee in early 2006. “Kat” has been a pleasure to work with as she more recently pulled the details and logistics together for Citrus Expo 2007, likely to be the biggest and best Expo of the event’s 16 year history. She has also effectively learned the citrus newsbeat as a program anchor for Southeast AgNet. We wish her the best in her new endeavors as an ag-chem sales rep in central Florida, and in her marriage set for late September. Good Luck Kat! We hope you’ll remember those of us at the bottom of the job training and feeding chain!
Pre-register for Seminars and Trade Show attendance at
Citrus Growers who pre-register will be eligible to win a very nice gun safe sponsored by Everglades Farm Equipment.
Never before has Citrus Expo invested as much in assembling seminar presentations as it has for this year’s lineup, focused primarily on greening research and the latest advice for growers on up-to-date management practice recommendations. 
Get a preview in this report from one of the Florida-based presenters, Dr. Michael Rogers from UF’s Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred, FL. Also remember to pre-register to make access to Citrus Expo as easy as it can get. Growers who pre-register will be entered into a prize drawing for a very nice gun safe being donated by Everglades Farm Equipment. You must be present to win, and the gun safe drawing will take place Wednesday August 22nd near the end of the lunch break.
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In this weeks podcast, the Florida Ag Statistics Service reviews last seasons numbers and prepares for the October Crop Forecast, Florida Citrus Commission Chairman Ben Albritton, Jr. addresses the free rider issue, NCBA President John Queen encourages cattlemen to contact their congressmen, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Charles Bronson looks at the states future in bio-fuels, and farm broadcasters mourn the loss of Russ Ragan.
PROGRAM NOTE: This weeks’ podcast will be the last for a while. We plan to temporarily put our attentions to the project of redesigning this website and adding some new features for the region’s agricultural interests in the not-too-distant future, including a new lineup of podcasts that will better serve farmers and ranchers in the ‘deep southeast’. Meanwhile, the daily news postings will continue uninterrupted, so stay tuned!
To hear Florida’s weekly reviews subscribe to our podcast .
FEBRUARY 4TH IS THE DEADLINE - HAVE YOU RETURNED YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE YET?
In this weeks podcast, National Cowboy Day is planned for July 28, the second annual Farm to Fuel Summit held in Sarasota, Department of Plant Industry meets with growers at five meetings across the state, and newly elected Florida Citrus Chairman Ben Albritton, Jr. talks about his plans for the year.
To hear Florida’s weekly reviews subscribe to our podcast .
Southeast Agnet’s Katherine Bush attended the first of five DPI meetings held in Bartow and files this informative report. Report (1:15 mp3)
Citrus Expo is investing more than ever before in its seminar and trade show program in an effort to bring as much critical and timely information together for citrus growers as possible at this critical time of change. Growers who pre-register for Citrus Expo will be eligible to win a gun safe donated by Everglades Farm Equipment. Hear more details and comments from Gulf Citrus Growers Association Executive Ron Hamel in this report.
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Citrus researchers and tech experts have been working on a system that can now greatly simplify how growers record and plot the locations of certain trees in their groves. Professor Emeritus Herb Nigg at University of Florida’s Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred comments on the system in this report. By the way, growers can find information about this new technology at the upcoming Citrus Expo in Ft Myers August 22 & 23 at Lee Civic Center.
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In this weeks podcast, a Florida dairyman talks about the new NRCS BMP program, the new Pest Risk Assessment affects more than just citrus growers, a Florida Farm Bureau member is named Young Farmer Produce Leader, a peak into the 2007 Citrus Expo, and this week’s Agri-View.
To hear Florida’s weekly reviews subscribe to our podcast .
This year there are many new exhibitors who have joined the show. One exciting new addition is Cabela’s Outdoor Outfitters who has joined the Expo as a Platinum Exhibitor. With their closest retail store to Florida located in northern Georgia, Cabela’s has joined our show to promote their online store www.Cabelas.com. Make plans to visit Cabela’s at booth #502, and check out what they have to offer for all of your outdoor needs!
In this weeks podcast, Commissioner Bronson talks Farm to Fuel and export facilities, discussion on the Pest Risk Assessment, the Farm Improvement Act, and new science that may clarify citrus risks.
To hear Florida’s weekly reviews subscribe to our podcast .
The 16th Annual Citrus Expo is set for Wednesday and Thursday August 22 & 23, Lee Civic Center Ft Myers. This is not a farmworker event. Citrus Expo is a private event for the serious grower, production manager, leader, executive and decision maker in the citrus industry. The Expo Steering Committee recently met to fine tune the most in-depth seminar and trade show program available in the citrus community. Trade show exhibits are well ahead of last year. Seminars include greening experts from several countries flying in to join numerous others on the two day program. Hear more details in this report and visit the website to pre-register! Pre-registered growers will be entered in a drawing for a gun safe donated by Everglades Farm Equipment.
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In this week’s Florida Department of Citrus News feaute, Mike Yetter with International Marketing for the Department explains how the increase and decrease of the dollar effects the marketing of Florida citrus. Report (2:00 mp3)
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