Orange juice lovers concerned about the fruit's decline might have a reason to breathe a sigh of relief.
Coca-Cola, the world's largest juice producer through its Minute Maid brand, has announced it is joining forces with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other major companies to fight a devastating plant disease threatening orange groves worldwide.
According to Food Dive, the new partnership, called the MIT Generative AI Impact Consortium, will use artificial intelligence to take on "real-world problems," starting with one of the biggest threats to your morning glass of OJ: citrus greening.
Citrus greening, spread by invasive insects, has wreaked havoc on orange production for decades. In Florida, output has dropped over 90% since 2005, while nearly half of Brazil's Citrus Belt was affected in 2024. The disease not only kills trees but has sent orange juice prices soaring, up 80% since 2019. Without intervention, experts warn the global orange supply could disappear within 25 years.
That's why Coca-Cola and MIT are kicking off "Save the Orange," a global initiative uniting growers, researchers, and scientists to detect, manage, and eventually cure citrus greening. The company is collaborating with Fundecitrus, a Brazilian citrus research group, and biotech firm Invaio Sciences to explore solutions.
"As a leading provider of fruit juice worldwide, we have a unique perspective on the critical issue of citrus greening," said Christina Ruggiero, president of global nutrition at Coca-Cola. "We stand with the orange farming community and are closely collaborating with Brazil-based research lab Fundecitrus to find a viable solution."
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If successful, the project could help stabilize orange supplies and protect farming communities whose livelihoods depend on citrus harvests. Environmentally, saving millions of trees also means preventing further land use and chemical waste from mass replanting.
This isn't Coca-Cola's first brush with sustainability headlines. Recently, a Philadelphia bottler switched out its plastic six-pack rings for fiber-based holders, which was a win for ocean health. But the company still has a long way to go: Coca-Cola was named the world's worst plastic polluter in Break Free From Plastic's 2022 audit, ahead of peers like Nestlé and PepsiCo.
Still, initiatives like "Save the Orange" show how big brands can leverage resources and tech innovation for positive change. And with orange juice on breakfast tables worldwide, the stakes couldn't be higher.
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