Post-Milton Citrus Report
Last week, the USDA released its citrus crop forecast for the 2024-25 season . . . the agency predicted a total output of fifteen-million boxes of orange crop . . . . This is three million boxes LESS than the previous season . . . and this forecast was issued BEFORE Hurricane Milton hit. Additionally, the USDA is predicting a 22% drop in grapefruit output.
After the storm blew off into the Atlantic last Thursday, Central Florida citrus farmers have had to re-evaluate this year’s projected output. Industry experts estimate that seventy percent of the region’s citrus acreage was affected by Milton – and farms that have struggled in recent years to recover from previous hurricanes . . . and have spent nearly two decades fighting off a bacterial disease known as citrus greening that has decimated citrus crops.
Florida Citrus Mutual is the state’s largest trade association for citrus growers, Engage spoke with Matt Joyner, the mutual’s Executive Vice President and CEO, about the state of the region’s industry, post-Milton.
Breaking Down Amendment 4
Hundreds of thousands of Floridians have already voted by mail in the November General Election. One of the constitutional initiatives on the ballot this year has to do with reproductive rights.
Pro-choice advocates, such as Floridians Protecting Freedom, have been working to educate the public on Amendment 4 prior to election day, Nov. 5. The group was responsible for collecting the 900,000 necessary signatures to get the amendment on the November ballot. Now, in order to pass, 60% of voters must say yes.
Opponents of the proposed amendment, groups like Physicians Against Amendment 4, have been pushing back, arguing that if passed, there would be unintended consequences. The amendment is 49 words long and is stirring a lot of disagreement on what it would do.
Central Florida Public Media health reporter Joe Mario Pedersen has been breaking down the amendment from multiple perspectives and he joined Engage to share his findings.
Coping with Election Stress
A recent survey from Forbes Health asked respondents if they had been “slightly, moderately, or significantly negatively impacted” by the election . . . more than sixty percent said they had.
Any presidential election is an exercise in high-stakes campaigning . . . this year’s has become especially vitriolic with hyperbolic doom-saying, careless scapegoating and threats of political retribution. Much of the discourse has devolved into name-calling reminiscent of grade-school bullying.
A twenty-four hour news cycle coupled with the obsessive social media habits of many Americans have created a toxic brew feeding anxiety and stress . . . with little hope that this would be alleviated come election night.
So how do Americans maintain engagement with the political process and stay informed during the campaign cycle without accumulating the unwanted baggage of election stress?
Cheryn Stone posed that question to Cherlette McCullough, a licensed therapist practicing in Winter Park specializing in addressing trauma and mental health.
One Small Step
When Joel Hunter, the former spiritual adviser to Barack Obama, sat down for a conversation with a stranger with differing political views at Central Florida Public Media studios, he didn’t hold back.
“What’s it been like for you with people like me?” Hunter asked. “Old, white conservative - how’s this gonna go?”
Hunter was speaking to 38-year-old Brandon Martin, who described his feelings in a word: Wary.
“I think being a Black gay man in America, there’s a lot to be wary of,” Martin said. “There’s a lot of hurt around it. So there’s a lot to fear, and be wary of.”
Hunter told Martin that he understands.
“There’s still so much tribalism when it comes to religion or even whiteness that we got a long way to go,” Hunter said. “But these conversations, that’s why we’re here.”
Central Florida Public Media and StoryCorps are bringing together strangers with differing political views for guided conversations - not to debate politics, but find common ground. The project is called One Small Step.
Engage speaks with Rebecca Fernandez, project coordinator and director of community collaboration with Central Florida Public Media.
