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Citrus greening is one of the most serious citrus plant diseases in the world. It has
taken a toll on Florida's citrus industry and threatens other states as well. If we
don't develop solutions both short term and long term it could basically wipe out the
entire citrus industry. The disease is spread by a gnat-sized insect called the Asian Citrus
Psyllid (sih-lid). Citrus greening causes the tree to become discolored and the fruit
becomes bitter and misshapen and often falls off the tree before it is ripe. And ultimately
leads to the death of the tree. In the last seven years citrus greening cost Florida four
and half billion dollars in lost production and eighty two hundred lost jobs. It could
also drive up the cost of consumer citrus products like orange juice. To control the
disease, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has put together a multi-agency coordination
group to address the threat. We will work with the industry. We will work with our state
agricultural partners. We will work with local groups as well to get input in terms of how
we should direct our resources, how we should use the money that we are spending, what is
the priority, what is the priority research. In fiscal year 2013, USDA's Citrus Health
Response Program spent over 41 million dollars to stop the spread of citrus diseases, most
of it going toward citrus greening. USDA has also spent millions of dollars on research
to find a solution. In Washington, D.C. for the U.S. Department of Agriculture I'm Bob
Ellison.