It’s no secret that when people think about Florida, images come to mind of citrus and Florida oranges, the official State fruit. But most people don’t know any of the interesting history behind the Florida orange or how oranges came to be grown in Florida.
You can find a lot of neat, fun facts that are interesting about Florida oranges like the fact that 40% of the oranges grown in the U.S. are grown in Florida, but most of the oranges that are grown in Florida aren’t shipped to markets to be eaten, they are shipped to factories to make juice. Some are even used to make fruit baskets.
Some industry experts say that as much as 90% of the oranges that are grown in Florida end up making juice and juice concentrate and aren’t shipped out to be sold to consumers. Because so much of the annual orange crop in Florida goes into making orange juice, the State of Florida declared orange juice to be the official state beverage in 1967.
The orange blossom is also the official state flower of Florida because of the state’s unique identity as a citrus growing state. The subtropical climate of Florida makes it the perfect environment to grow citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruits, which came to Florida from Barbados.
But, the hurricanes that hit the Florida coast every year can sometimes have damaging effects on the orange crops. So if you’ve ever wondered why the price of real Florida orange juice varies each year it’s because the price of the juice depends on how many oranges are available that year to be made into juice, and that number depends on how many hurricanes hit Florida the preceding year.
Florida oranges were first grown in St. Augustine, Florida by the monks who had taken up residence there in the 1500s. If you’re interested in the real history of orange production in Florida you can go to many different museums in St. Augustine which document the creation of the citrus industry in Florida and trace the history of citrus production in the state back through the years to the St. Augustine monks. The other state that is most well known for orange production is California, and most of the California oranges are distinctly different in taste and color from the oranges produced in Florida because of the differences in the climate in the two states. Most people seem to have a preference for either Florida oranges or California oranges.
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Article contributed by Hale Groves, the world-leader in fresh fruit baskets and Florida citrus, including Florida oranges, navel orange, honeybells, tangerines, ruby red grapefruit and gourmet gift baskets.
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