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Kumquat Growers Fret Over Restrictions On Shipping

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 23, 2008

ST. JOSEPH - Shipping restrictions that irked local kumquat growers last year remain in place leading up to this week's festival celebrating the tart orange fruit.

There's also no reason to think the restrictions will go away anytime soon.

"Last season, we were working under a temporary order or rule," said Frank Gude, co-owner of Kumquat Growers. "Well, now they have finalized the rule, and it would take two years to change it if they went back through the Legislature and everything."

On the bright side, the Gudes will get their yearly dose of free advertising when the annual Kumquat Festival hits Dade City on Saturday. The Gudes will have an open house Thursday and Friday at the packing plant, where kumquats will be available, along with the various products made from them.

The shipping restrictions - enacted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to prevent the spread of citrus canker - prohibit the company from shipping anything to other citrus-producing states.

More harmful to Gude and the local kumquat growers, however, is the USDA's prohibition on the shipment of kumquat leaves and stems to other states.

People who celebrate the Chinese New Year - a sizable percentage of Gude's customers - would buy kumquats with the leaves and stems. The ongoing restriction means his company loses about 25 percent of the potential kumquat market, Gude said.

Todd Leskanic

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