So, How Have The Last 4 Years Treated You? [Opinion]
November 1, 2012 
November provides quite the juxtaposition of political awareness. We go from a relentless firestorm at the beginning of the month to all of a sudden … relief. The tsunami of poli-tacky TV ads thankfully passes. The forest of election yard signs all but disappears — save for a few that will disintegrate with time. Most importantly, we all move on — no matter who wins.
This yearly process almost feels like a cleansing once it is all said and done. Of course, the muck becomes multiplied when the Presidential post is at stake. Not surprisingly, a major focal point of discussion from the candidates centers around progress vs. regression. “Are you better off than you once were?” is a question that gets paraded about ad nauseum for the electorate to contemplate. So, are things better now than they were four years ago? Yes … and well, no.
Economies Of Scale
Jobless rates, national debt tallies, foreclosure fallout, and health care cost calamities aside, there have been some positive gains in the specialty ag sector, particularly in Florida. Looking back at the November 2008 issue of Florida Grower for comparison sake, the topics and their related challenges haven’t changed much, but the knowledge base addressing the issues has. Marked progress on the research side has provided plant breeders an enhanced ability to produce fruit and vegetable varieties that are better looking, tasting, and more tolerant to diseases. Evidence of this: Check out some of the latest varieties in the 2012 Vegetable Seed Showcase. Growers have never had so many legitimate marketplace contenders to choose from.
Citrus certainly has had its share of problems in recent times. Production costs are at an all-time high due in most part to heightened pest and disease management. However, while canker, blight, black spot, and most notably HLB have continued the assault on our groves, tremendous strides have been made to help identify major pressure points of the maladies and vectors, as well as the tools to fight them. We’re that much closer to viable solutions thanks to what researchers have learned.
Future Prospects
By no means is anyone in our industry feeling secure. With so many outside factors beyond our control, it’s understandable. Growers have been forced to re-adjust their strategies to compete and make margin in today’s expanding marketplace. Luckily — even from just four years ago — superior technology, better communication tools, and market intel are available to help make that happen. Not to mention the growing alternative crop bucket, which looks just peachy. What’s bad can be good again.
It’s hard to predict how things will look tomorrow, let alone in 2016. But, that’s what forecasts are for. Oh yeah, and politicians.
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