Dundee Citrus Growers Association Celebrates a Century of Innovation & Adaptation
by RYAN MILEJCZAK
One hundred years ago, a group of citrus growers banded together in Dundee to create a cooperative that would allow them to pool their resources and buying power. This cooperative took the name Dundee Citrus Growers Association, and this year, they’re celebrating 100 years of success.
“Dundee CGA was founded in 1924 as a grower-owned co-op,” explains Chief Executive Officer Steven Callaham. “The purpose of the co-op is that a group of growers join together to do something they couldn’t do alone. The co-op allowed them to pool their resources in order to be more efficient with harvesting, packaging, and marketing, and to give them collective buying power.”
“As a co-op, we’re a little different from traditional companies,” adds Jennifer Schaal, Chief Financial Officer at Dundee CGA. “It used to be much more popular, and remains popular in other industries like banking. But for Dundee, we’re a bit of an anomaly.”
While Dundee CGA may not have been remarkable at its founding, these days, remarkable is an understatement. The organization hasn’t had it easy persevering over the past hundred years, with major challenges such as freezes, canker, and of course, greening.
“During the freezes of the 1980s, our sources of fruit were severely hurt,” says Lindsay Raley, current president and board chairman of Dundee CGA whose family has been a part of Dundee CGA since its founding.
“A crucial juncture in our history was that we began aggressively sourcing fruit from southwest Florida at that time, and that’s really what kept Dundee in business through the ’80s and early ’90s.”
This willingness to innovate and adapt is one of the main ways Dundee has managed to not only survive, but thrive, over the last 100 years. When greening appeared in Florida in the early 2000s, the folks at Dundee knew they’d have to adapt yet again.
“The first 75, 80 years of Dundee history, it was smooth sailing,” Schaal says. “But then greening hit. For Dundee, that’s when we said, if we’re going to thrive, we’re going to have to change and adapt.”
These changes included developing peach and blueberry growing programs, as well as providing gift fruit fulfillment services for other companies in the state. Together, these help Dundee keep everything running smoothly and ensure profits for its growers. But perhaps the most obvious boon for the co-op is its use of Citrus Under Protective Screen, or CUPS.
“One of the really big changes that Dundee has gone through, and that we take great pride in, is being one of the early adopters of CUPS,” explains Callaham.
CUPS has its origins at the UF/IFAS Citrus Research Center in Lake Alfred, where Dr. Arnold Schuman began researching it in 2014. This production system involves growing trees under a protective screen structure that keeps out the Asian citrus psyllid that causes greening, leading to rapid, healthy growth and disease-free fruit.
“We took the concept in the research model to a commercial level in 2017 by developing a 110 acre CUPS complex, and our grower members were able to purchase and own CUPS structures within this complex,” says Callaham. “We’re now in the process of developing 1,000 acres under protective screen, which will provide Dundee with a high-quality, sustainable supply of fresh fruit for many, many years.”
The CUPS program has been a major success for Dundee, with lush, green trees that produce high-quality fruit, and CUPS-grown grapefruit is already available in several Florida grocery stores.
“Being involved with the CUPS project from the very beginning, and to see where it’s gone from 2017 to now, is amazing,” recounts Schaal. “I love that I can walk into my local Publix and see our grapefruit for sale with the PLU label that I personally worked with a marketing company to develop. That was definitely one of my proudest moments with Dundee.”
This ability to adapt, along with the passion and dedication of its members, has been key to the association’s century of success and resilience.
“I really credit the success of Dundee to our forward-thinking management team, to the support of a very engaged board of directors, and of course, to our employees all the way down the ranks who are so committed and loyal,” says Raley.
While the Florida citrus industry at large still faces significant challenges, the folks at Dundee remain hopeful about the future.
“There’s definitely a future for the Florida citrus industry,” says Schaal. “It probably won’t look anything like the past, but there’s definitely a future. The people who are here now, still remaining in this industry, are those who have fought through and persevered. They’re committed, and they’re going to find a way to continue. They’re here to stay.”
Callaham echoed this sentiment.
“The industry is going to be different. But I see the folks that have survived finding their niche within the industry to remain relevant, profitable, and successful. I don’t think any of us are where we want to be yet, but I see a very, very bright future for the industry.”
