History of Citrus in the Sunshine State

<p>When most people think of Florida, their mind conjures up images of beaches or Disney World—maybe alligators or the latest Florida Man headline. But there was a time when Florida was synonymous with one thing: citrus. Florida was the country’s leading citrus producer, outranking even California. </p><p>So, what happened? Yes, <a href="https://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/tags/citrus-greening" target="_blank">citrus greening</a> is partly to blame. But that’s not the whole story. </p><p>For answers, today we’ll be hearing from The Zest’s web and social media guru, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/crbalkcom97/" target="_blank">Chandler Balkcom</a>. He’s a second-year grad student studying history at the University of South Florida. He’s also a former student of <a href="https://www.usf.edu/arts-sciences/florida-studies/faculty/gary-mormino.aspx" target="_blank">Dr. Gary Mormino</a>, who is an author, historian and Professor Emeritus in the USF Florida Studies program. </p><p>Chandler asked Dr. Mormino to walk us through some of the key moments for Florida citrus, including its origins, how World War 2 led to the development of orange juice concentrate and Dr. Mormino’s predictions for the future of Florida’s citrus industry.</p><p><strong>Related episodes:</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://thezestpodcast.com/s2-episode-26/">Florida Fruit & Vegetable Gardening 101</a></li><li><a href="https://thezestpodcast.com/food-memories-of-latin-america/">Food Memories of Latin America</a></li><li><a href="https://thezestpodcast.com/robert-is-here-fruit-stand/">The Man Behind the Robert Is Here Fruit Stand</a></li><li><a href="https://thezestpodcast.com/students-dish-on-dorm-food-meal-prep-and-cooking-in-college">Students Dish on Dorm Food, Meal Prep and Cooking in College</a></li></ul>