U.S.: Florida citrus industry "extremely nervous" about Irma
Florida's struggling citrus industry is bracing for Hurricane Irma as it rolls through the Caribbean and is expected to make landfall in the U.S. later this week. 
The Category 5 hurricane has left at least 13 people dead on Caribbean islands, with winds of around 180 miles per hour.
A state of emergency has been declared throughout Florida, with some 100,000 residents of Miami-Dade County evacuated on Thursday morning.
Florida Citrus Mutual spokesperson Andrew Meadows told Fresh Fruit Portal he did not want to make predictions about what was going to happen with the storm.
He said everyone was hoping it would end up missing the state altogether and head north into the Atlantic Ocean.
"We as an industry are extremely anxious," he said.
"There’s not much a grower can do with a storm of this magnitude other than secure his equipment and make sure his crop insurance paperwork is in order."
The Florida industry has been battling the devastating citrus green disease for many years, having seen a huge decline in production over the last decade.
"The citrus industry here is fighting for its very existence," Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association spokesperson Lisa Lochridge told CNN.
"This [hurricane] is the last thing we need."
If Irma does strike Florida's orchards, it will be an economic disaster for the industry, according to Tom Spreen, professor emeritus at the University of Florida.
"If this goes up the peninsula the way some forecasts project, it will do a tremendous amount of damage," Spreen was quoted as saying.
"I don't want to get too dramatic and say this will be the end of Florida's citrus industry, but it'd be a big blow."
Florida orange juice prices have reportedly seen their biggest increase in months this week, according to Bloomberg.
It said prices for November delivery recently jumped 6.2% to settle at US$1.45 a pound on ICE Futures U.S. in New York, which it described as the biggest gain for a most-active contract since May 2, 2016.
Bloomberg reported all of the state's crop was at risk of moderate to severe damage, with trees already full of fruit, according to Donald Keeney, a meteorologist at MDA Weather Services in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Disruptions to operations
Logistics provider Crowley said in an update on Thursday that it was seeing disruptions with many of its services throughout the Caribbean Basin, including Central America.
Customized Brokers earlier announced its offices would be closed and not handling air or ocean shipments Friday through Sunday.
"Given the severity of the approaching storm and anticipated interruptions to cargo operations, we recommend that you not ship any perishables by air freight this weekend," the company said.
Florida-based Ayco Farms has also announced all its operations will be fully shutdown from Friday through Tuesday.
Another Florida-headquartered importer, HLB Specialties, will also close its office on Friday but like Ayco, its will forward calls to cell phones with staff working remotely.
"Orders from our other warehouses in Texas and California are not affected," the company said.
HLB expects vessels to be delayed one or two days as a result of the hurricane.
"Many flights into Miami have already been canceled, so there will definitely be delays and a shortage of inbound fruits such as papayas from Brazil (flights) and Guatemala (ship) as well as our rambutan from Guatemala," a spokesperson told Fresh Fruit Portal.
"Our warehouse will most likely be closed on Friday and the weekend, so whoever has orders leaving South Florida needs to get them on a truck on Thursday.
Photo: www.shutterstock.com
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