An ancient tree from India is now thriving in groves where citrus trees once flourished in Florida, and could help provide the nation with renewable energy.
As large parts of the Sunshine State鈥檚 once-famous citrus industry have all but dried up over the past two decades because of two fatal diseases, greening and citrus canker, some farmers are turning to the pongamia tree, a climate-resilient tree with the potential to produce plant-based proteins and a sustainable biofuel.
For years, pongamia has been used for shade trees, producing legumes 鈥� little brown beans 鈥� that are so bitter wild hogs won't even eat them.
But unlike the orange and grapefruit trees that long occupied these rural Florida groves northwest of West Palm Beach, pongamia trees don鈥檛 need much attention.
Pongamia trees also don鈥檛 need fertilizer or pesticides. They flourish in drought or rainy conditions. And they don鈥檛 require teams of workers to pick the beans. A machine simply shakes the tiny beans from the branches when they are ready to harvest.
Terviva, a San Francisco-based company founded in 2010 by Naveen Sikka, then uses its patented process to remove the biopesticides that cause the bitter taste, making the beans suitable for food production.
鈥淔lorida offers a rare opportunity for both Terviva and former citrus farmers. The historical decline of the citrus industry has left farmers without a crop that can grow profitably on hundreds of thousands of acres, and there needs to be a very scalable replacement, very soon,鈥� Sikka told The Associated Press. 鈥淧ongamia is the perfect fit."
What is the pongamia tree?
The pongamia is a wild tree native to India, Southeast Asia and Australia.
The legume is now being used to produce , including Ponova culinary oil and protein, which are featured ingredient in Aloha's Kona protein bars. The company also makes protein flour.
The legumes also produce oil that can be used as a biofuel, largely for aviation, which leaves a very low carbon footprint, said Ron Edwards, chairman of Terviva's board of directors and a long-time Florida citrus grower.
Turning a wild tree into a domestic one hasn't been easy, Edwards said.
鈥淭here are no books to read on it, either, because no one else has ever done it,鈥� he said.
Bees and other pollinators feast on the pongamia鈥檚 flowers, supporting local biodiversity, Edwards said. An acre of the trees can potentially provide the same amount of oil as four acres of soy beans, he added.
What鈥檚 left after the oil is removed from the pongamia bean is 鈥渁 very high-grade protein that can be used as a substitute in baking and smoothies and all kinds of other plant-based protein products,鈥� Edwards said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of potential for the food industry and the oil and petroleum industry.鈥�
Why Florida?
鈥淲e know pongamia grows well in Florida, and the end markets for the oil and protein that come from the pongamia beans 鈥� biofuel, feed, and food ingredients 鈥� are enormous," Sikka said. 鈥淪o farmers can now reduce their costs and more closely align to the leading edge of sustainable farming practices."
At a nursery near Fort Pierce, workers skilled in pongamia grafting techniques affix a portion of the mother tree to a pongamia rootstock, which ensures the genetics and desired characteristics of the mother tree are perpetuated in all of Terviva's trees.
Pongamia vs. citrus
Citrus had been Florida's premier crop for years until disease caught up with it starting in the 1990s with citrus canker and later greening.
, a bacterial disease, is not harmful to humans, but it causes lesions on the fruit, stems and leaves. Eventually, it makes the trees unproductive.
Citrus greening, also known as Huanglongbing, slowly kills trees and degrades the fruit, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Greening has spread throughout Florida since 2005, devastating countless groves and reducing citrus production by 75%. The disease has spread to Louisiana, Texas and California.
Hurricane Ian caused about to Florida's agriculture in September 2023, hitting the citrus industry at the beginning of its growing season.
Disease and climate issues have also affected most of the world's top citrus-producing countries. For example, in Brazil 鈥� the world鈥檚 largest exporter of orange juice 鈥� is forecast to be the worst in 36 years because of flooding and drought, according to a forecast by Fundecitrus, a citrus growers鈥� organization in Sao Paulo state.
But climate and disease have little effect on pongamia trees, the company's officials said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just tough, a jungle-tested tree鈥� Edwards said. 鈥淚t stands up to a lot of abuse with very little caretaking."
Pongamia also grows well in Hawaii, where it now thrives on land previously used for sugarcane.
What are citrus farmers saying?
John Olson, who owns Circle O Ranch, west of Fort Pierce, has replaced his grapefruit groves with 215 acres (87.01 hectares) of pongamia trees.
鈥淲e went through all the ups and downs of citrus and eventually because of greening, abandoned citrus production,鈥� Olson said. 鈥淔or the most part, the citrus industry has died in Florida.鈥�
While the grapefruit grove was modest, it was common for a grove that size to be profitable in the 1980s and 1990s, Olson said.
Edwards said farmers used various sprays to kill the insect that was spreading the disease. Eventually, the cost of taking care of citrus trees became too risky.
That's when he decided to go a different route.
鈥淲hat attracted me to pongamia was the fact that one it can repurpose fallow land that was citrus and is now lying dormant,鈥� he said. "From an ecological point of view, it鈥檚 very attractive because it can replace some of the oils and vegetable proteins that are now being generated by things like palm oil, which is environmentally a much more damaging crop.鈥�
What about biofuel?
In December 2023, Terviva signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation to provide biofuel feedstock that can be converted into biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel.
鈥淥ur partnership with Mitsubishi is off to a great start,鈥� Sikka said, noting that the company coordinates closely with Mitsubishi on tree plantings and product development and sales. 鈥淭erviva鈥檚 progress has accelerated thanks to Mitsubishi鈥檚 expertise and leadership around the globe on all facets of Terviva鈥檚 business.鈥�
What food products does pongamia produce?
The research is ongoing, but Edwards said they have made really good graham crackers in addition to the table oil and other plant-based protein products, including flour and protein bars.
Pongamia offers an alternative to soybean and yellow pea protein 鈥渋f you don鈥檛 want your protein to come from meat," he said.
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This story was first published on Jul. 6, 2024. It was updated on Jul. 8, 2024 to correct the spelling of Ponova culinary oil, which is made from pongamia trees.
Freida Frisaro, The Associated Press
