Soilcea begins commercial rollout of HLB-resistant rootstock after federal approval

Soilcea has started commercial shipments of its CRISPR-developed CarriCea T1 citrus rootstock following approval.

A new champion has officially entered the fight against citrus greening. Florida-based biotech firm Soilcea has started commercial shipments of its CRISPR-developed CarriCea T1 citrus rootstock following approval from both the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). "We’re really excited to start getting these trees in the hands of growers,” CEO and President Yianni Lagos told FreshFruitPortal.com . “We have 300,000 of them in production, and every month we're gonna get more and more trees out to growers." Lagos confirmed that the rootstock has obtained all required federal and state regulatory approvals for commercial use and that no paperwork remains pending. The rollout comes as Florida's citrus industry continues rebuilding after years of production declines linked to Huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening disease. According to the USDA, Florida's orange production has fallen sharply over the past two decades ...