Farmers in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) have a powerful new ally in the fight against crop diseases.
Meet Monica Navia-Urrutia a plant pathologist at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). Working in the heart of the EAA – at the UF/IFAS Everglades Research and Education Center (EREC) — she brings unique skill sets and a passion for supporting growers with cutting-edge research and disease management solutions for the region’s key crops.
The EAA plays a crucial role in Florida’s agricultural economy, generating over $11 billion in sales annually and supporting 118,000 jobs in Palm Beach County alone. The region’s fertile fields produce sugarcane, sweet corn, rice, lettuce, microgreens, celery, green beans and radishes, all of which are vulnerable to plant diseases that can threaten yields and drive up production costs…