Florida Citrus Collapse Warns Bio‑Pest Risk

Florida orange production has fallen to roughly 12 million boxes this year from about 150 million in the early 2000s, driven by citrus greening spread by the Asian citrus psyllid (detected in 1998). The piece argues this industry‑scale loss illustrates how a single invasive—or potentially engineered—pest can devastate U.S. agriculture and suggests considering gene‑drive style controls as a last resort. — It spotlights agricultural biosecurity as a national vulnerability and pushes controversial genetic tools into the policy debate before a broader food shock.