Citrus Research & Development Foundation

Challenges

CRDF funds research projects that range from those looking for ways to interrupt the breeding/feeding of psyllids to researching disease-resistant plants produced through traditional breeding methods or genetic engineering.

Solutions

The presence of the HLB disease in Florida and its pending spread in other states poses a substantial economic threat to all stakeholders in the US citrus industry. The Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) is an agricultural grant that aims to solve critical US specialty crop issues, priorities, or problems through the integration of research and extension activities that use systems-based, trans-disciplinary approaches. CRDF engaged Morrison to coordinate the 40+ scientists, researchers, and professionals included in this agricultural grant proposal, and prepare the SCRI grant application.

Successes

Morrison helped CRDF secure $9 million in funding, the largest SCRI grant awarded in the nation that year, in a grant program with a single-digit success rate nationally; this was Morrison’s second SCRI proposal, both successful. CRDF will work in close collaboration with the Citrus Research Board (CRB), USDA, and universities in Florida, California, Texas, and Arizona.

About the client

The Citrus Research & Development Foundation (CRDF) was formed to be the central organization to coordinate all research into combating Huanglongbing (HLB), or Citrus Greening Disease. HLB has devastated citrus orchards around the world and caused $3.6 billion damage in Florida alone between 2006 and 2011. The invasive psyllid that carries the disease has been found in Florida, Texas, California, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi and Mexico; the disease itself is present in Florida, Texas, and California.