<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/florida-oranges_0.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0" srcset="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/florida-oranges_0.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 400w, https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/florida-oranges_0.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 800w" > Oranges are seen in a tree as the citrus industry tries to find a cure for the disease 'citrus greening' that is caused by the Asian citrus psyllid, an insect, that carries the bacterium, 'citrus greening' or huanglongbing, from tree to tree on May 13, 2013 in Fort Pierce, Florida. There is no known cure for the disease that forms when the insect deposits the bacterium on citrus trees causing the leaves on the tree to turn yellow the roots to decay and bitter fruits fall off the dying branches prematurely. (Getty Images/Joe Raedle) (Getty Images/Joe Raedle)

Growers in the Sunshine State are struggling with one of the worst catastrophes to hit their crop in a generation.

A little invasive bug, known as the Asian citrus psyllid, has spread a crippling pathogen to every county in Florida, devastating its citrus economy and leaving the future of the industry in doubt. Known as citrus greening, once an orange tree is infected, its leaves begin to bleach, fruit becomes bitter and irregularly formed, and the whole plant begins to die.

A new report by the Florida Department of Citrus says that the state's annual harvest could plummet to 27 million boxes if nothing is done to stem the impact of the disease, which costs $1 billion dollars in damage to Florida's economy each year. Since the pathogen arrived in 2005, the disease has cost the industry around $7.80 billion dollars in cumulative losses and thousands of jobs lost.

This year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates Florida's annual orange yield will shrink to 74 million boxes, down from 96.7 million last year.

"The entire industry is in peril," said Rusty Wiygul, the director of grower's affairs at Florida Citrus Mutual, a trade group representing the citrus industry. "We're fighting it in every grove in Florida. It attacks the root system of the tree, gets into the phloem of the tree (innermost layer of the bark), and blocks the flow of nutrients into the foliage and the fruit so the tree can't feed properly, and it slowly dies."

"The Asian citrus psyllid was first detected in Florida in 1998," explained Xavier Martini, who is a researcher at the Citrus Research and Education Center. "It is now present in California and Texas, but the densities in these states are still low compared to Florida. This insect is the vector of a bacteria which is the causal agent of the citrus disease called huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening."

Florida has tried to deal with citrus greening in a plethora of ways: intensive insecticide treatments, removal of infected trees, re-planting healthy citrus plants produced in insect-proof nurseries, thermotherapy methods which involve heating up individual trees in portable greenhouses or steaming the trees, and even transmitting a piezoelectric buzzer that mimics the insect's mating calls.

"Expecting one silver bullet is unrealistic at this point," noted Kirsten Pelz-Stelinski, an associate professor of entomology at the Citrus Research and Education Center, who endorsed an all-of-the-above approach to combating citrus greening.

Treating groves with pesticides has largely been inadequate in fully combating the epidemic.

"The problem with using pesticides is that the insect is killed, but the tree is still infected," Michelle Cilia, a research molecular biologist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service, told weather.com in an email. "Even if a grower sprays his grove, psyllids can come into these treated groves from someone's backyard citrus tree or abandoned groves. Pesticides are highly ineffective; we need new approaches."

Another possible approach is genetically modifying orange trees to become resistant to the pathogen, but growers are wary of public opposition to such a plan, despite overwhelming scientific evidence showing GMOs to be safe. The U.S. EPA gave citrus grower Southern Gardens approval in May for large-scale field testing and just last week, University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences announced they had successfully created genetically modified citrus trees that showed enhanced resistance to greening.

"Improvement of citrus through genetic engineering remains the fastest method for improvement of existing citrus cultivars and has been a key component in the University of Florida’s genetic improvement strategy," UF plant cell genetics professor Judd Grosser said in a statement.

"What people don't understand is that we're not growing breasts on the tree, we're using a beet gene to work into the tree that helps it with it being not susceptible," Wiygul added.

Florida is set to provide additional funds to fight citrus greening, according to Jeri Bustamante, a spokeswoman for Florida Governor Rick Scott.

"(Last Monday) Gov. Scott rolled out his proposed budget for next year," she told weather.com. "The Florida First budget invests $8.5 million for research to stop the spread of citrus greening (Line Item 1436), and $7.7 million for the Citrus Health Response Program (Line Item 1467). This program is responsible for surveying citrus groves for pests and diseases, as well as ensuring growers are taking appropriate measures to suppress disease incidence and minimize spread."

Cilia said the most concerning thing about citrus greening was the speed in which it has spread throughout the state. "Once a tree dies, it's like a the death of family member in Florida," Cilia observed. "Some of these orange trees have been in people's family's for generations."



Wiygul said despite the widespread devastation of citrus greening, he was optimistic a cure would be found soon. "We don't have a lot of time," Wiygul said. "We're fast losing our industry."

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Foods in Danger Due to Climate Change