Ep #3: Callie Walker on Citrus Black Spot

Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Plant Industry News.
On this episode hear from Dr. Trevor Smith about DPI's farm bill
funding opportunities, our new deputy commissioner Deborah
Tannenbaum and one of our very own, Richard Gaskalla, being
inducted to the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame. 


Our special guest on this episode is the Bureau Chief of Pest
Eradication and Control and the Director of the Citrus Health
Response Program (CHRP), Callie Walker. Callie discusses Citrus
Black Spot disease, its affects on the Florida citrus industry
and what FDACS-DPI and CHRP are doing in relation to it. As a
seventh generation Floridian, Callie has a lifetime of experience
when it comes to the Florida citrus industry and her insight into
the issue of CBS is educational and enlightening. 


Follow the link below to learn more about Citrus Black
Spot.
https://crec.ifas.ufl.edu/extension/black_spot/citrus_black_spot.shtml 


February was an exciting month for DPI as our Entomology and
Apiary sections both had booths at the Florida State Fair in
Tampa. Every year DPI has a booth in Insect Encounters where fair
goers can pet or even hold an insect on display. Carolyn Duever
won the parking spot contest this month by having the closest
guess to the number of candy pieces in the Jar of Hearts. Finally
we had three major employment changes this month including Brandi
Simmons, Assistant Bureau of the Apiary section in the Bureau of
Plant and Apiary Inspection, Christine Zamora, Export Specialist
for the Bureau of Plant and Apiary Inspection, and Steve
Hildebrandt, Special Projects Coordinator in the Office of
Administration. To learn more about each individual mentioned,
tune in to this episode!


Follow us on social media @FDACSDPI. As always, you can find
updated versions of our latest publications and papers on our
website at
https://www.freshfromflorida.com/Divisions-Offices/Plant-Industry. 


Subscribe and rate us! If you have any questions or suggestions
for topics feel free to submit them to
DPI-blog@freshfromflorida.com and we will reference them in the
next episode.