Popular breakfast beverage is at risk of disappearing due to crop-destroying disease rampaging through Florida and Brazil

The world’s most popular breakfast drink is in danger of disappearing due to crop-destroying diseases and bad weather.

Orange trees in the U.S. and Brazil have suffered from citrus greening disease, caused by sap-sucking insects that kill trees after making existing fruit bitter.

And Florida has also been hit by hurricanes that have destroyed much of the U.S. supply.

Together, Florida and Brazil account for more than 85 percent of the world’s orange juice supply and make up a large share of the economies.

This year’s harvest is down 24 percent compared to 2023, causing orange juice prices to rise 20 percent.

Orange trees in the US and Brazil have suffered from citrus greening disease, which kills the trees within a few years and has caused a global citrus shortage

Citrus Greening Disease, also called Huanglongbing, is a bacterial infection that is considered one of the most serious citrus diseases in the world because there is no cure.

Once infected, most trees will produce poorly colored, crooked and bitter fruit, causing them to die within a few years.

The most vulnerable orange trees grow in regions with consistent temperatures of 77 degrees Fahrenheit, and the disease has already destroyed millions of acres of these crops in the US and abroad.

The disease can spread from one citrus plant nursery to another, and from the Florida Department of Citrus reported that the state’s citrus production could decline by more than 80 percent by 2026.

A small insect called the Asian citrus psyllid is responsible for the losses, which were first found in Palm Beach County, Florida in 1998

Within two years, the insect had spread to 31 provinces and has been making its way ever since Texas, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Hawaii and several other states.

The Asian citrus psyllid kills trees by first extracting large amounts of sap from the leaves as they feed, while also producing a significant amount of honeydew that covers the greenery.

As the honeydew coats the leaves, it encourages the growth of sooty mold, which prevents sunlight from reaching the leaves.

Over the past two decades, citrus greening disease has caused Florida’s orange juice supply to drop from 240 million cases per year to just 17 million cases.

Florida is the second largest producer of orange juice in the world and the largest in the US. It produces about half of what is consumed in the country.

Meanwhile, Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais, Brazil’s main orange-producing areas, are expected to harvest just 232 million cartons this year, down 24 percent from 2023.

Citrus Greening Disease, (pictured), also called Huanglongbing, is a bacterial infection that is considered one of the most serious citrus diseases in the world because there is no cure.

Supply chains are considering alternative methods to overcome the orange juice shortage, which could pose major long-term challenges.

They have proposed combining oranges with frozen juice and are lobbying the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to relax food regulations so they can add other citrus fruits to orange juice.

Mixing the new crop of oranges with frozen juice or with other fruits such as tangerines would require additional transportation and processing costs, which could further increase the cost of your morning drink.

This is because Americans are already complaining about the costs of inflation and expect their orange juice to cost less because it is diluted with other ingredients.

The price of a 16-ounce orange juice cost the average consumer $2.41 in 2019, but by the end of 2023 this had risen to $3.41, while consumer demand has fallen by a fifth compared to last year.

“The global orange juice industry is in crisis,” says Francois Sonneville, senior beverage analyst at Rabobank The guard.

“The Florida industry has all but disappeared and Brazil’s orchards are plagued by disease, rising costs and unfavorable growing conditions, leaving global orange juice supplies at their lowest point in decades,” he said.