Vital steps are being taken to rebuild the Florida Citrus Industry
“There’s something refreshing about an original,” says one of the new Florida Orange Juice commercial spots, which began airing in early February on major streaming services, on the web, and across social media. The short but sweet (pun intended) 15-second spots make it clear why America’s favorite juice is still America’s favorite juice.
When you’re one-of-a-kind, like the Original Wellness Drink™, you don’t need anything added or taken away. When your natural state is made up of nutrients and health benefits that modern juice consumers around the world crave— You don’t need to change or be anything but what you are.
Curious to see how this kind of messaging is being conveyed? Well, I’ll let you see the Florida Orange Juice commercials to find out for yourself. If you want to view them, but haven’t seen them “out in the wild,” they’ll be shown during the upcoming Florida Citrus Commission Meeting on Wednesday, March 26 at 9:00 a.m. EST.
The FCC Meeting’s notice and agenda are posted on our website. Those who can’t attend in person can join on their computer, mobile app, or room device virtually via Microsoft Teams. You may also call into the meeting (for audio only), and the number as well as the conference ID will be posted on the online notice.
With the Florida Legislative Session in full swing, this week we got to witness the outpouring of support during critical meetings with state leaders. We are cautiously optimistic that we’ll soon have some additional, much needed resources in the fight against citrus greening and getting more greening-tolerant trees in the ground.
Plus, with the glimmer of hope offered by the slight uptick in projected boxes of oranges announced on March 11 from the USDA Citrus Crop Forecast, our grit, commitment, and passion to reset and recover Florida’s iconic citrus industry is on display for anyone with eyes to see, and I believe that’s a good thing.
Call me biased, but I agree with the new commercials that it’s hard to deny a true original when you see one: “They’re just themselves, and they’re always ready to perform when it counts.” I feel that it takes an original to make an original, and the growers of Florida citrus are one-of-a-kind, just like America’s favorite juice. The FDOC and our partners at Florida Citrus Mutual (FCM) continue to advocate for a brighter future— one that spurs a rebuilding of the Florida citrus industry; one step at a time, and one tree at a time.
Steve Johnson is Chairman of the Florida Citrus Commission, which oversees the Florida Department of Citrus. He is the owner and general manager of Johnson Harvesting, Inc., based in Wauchula, FL.
