Organic bamboo introduced as new crop at Mixon Fruit Farms

Pressures exerted on the Florida citrus crop by the relentless forces of nature – greening, canker and weather – may have created an opening for a new crop.

Bamboo.

Gary Reeder, president of the Manatee County Farm Bureau, readily admits he knows nothing about bamboo. Even though his cousin, Sam Mixon, is the production manager for eight acres of bamboo planted a year ago at Mixon Fruit Farms, 2525 27th St. E.

Janet Mixon, who owns Mixon Fruit Farms with her husband, Dean, says it is among the first organic bamboo planted in the state.

Fields of Giant Tropical bamboo and Moso bamboo grow next to groves of fancy gift citrus that the Mixons ship around the United States. Even though the bamboo is still only about waist to head high, it will eventually tower up to 65 feet.

The Mixons see bamboo as a hedge against more decimation of Florida’s signature crop.

They are partnering with the OnlyMoso company from Sunrise, which offered a presentation to 16 farmers who gathered a year ago at Mixon Fruit Farms.

“They wanted to see how we planted it, how it did, and they are following how it’s doing to see if they want to do it next or not,” Mixon said of her bamboo crop.

“It’s easier to take care of, you don’t have to spray it with anything, and once it gets established you don’t have to water it with anything,” she said.

She touts the health benefits of bamboo as food and its versatility as a building material.

Bamboo grown at Mixon Fruit Farms primarily will be sold to OnlyMoso, but Mixon Fruit Farms also will be able to sell it independently as well, Mixon said.

Bamboo is widely used in Asian cooking, and Mixon envisions eventually including it in food offerings at Mixon Fruit Farms. Even though the first harvest at Mixon’s is about 18 months in the future, don’t be surprised if the business works out a way to introduce it into local culinary classes.

Thus far, OnlyMoso Corp USA has about 20 farming partners, and several nursery partners, including Sweetgrass Farms in southern Manatee County, said Chris Kaiser, director of sales and development for OnlyMoso.

“We’ve been in operation about 2 1/2 years,” Kaiser said, admitting that persuading farmers to give bamboo a try hasn’t been an easy sale.

“Farmers are always looking for a way to diversify. They want to ensure the opportunity is real and legitimate,” Kaiser said.

One of the ways OnlyMoso has sweetened the pot is by agreeing to buy the bamboo sprouts and trunks produced by their Florida partners for a 10-year period.

Eighty percent of the bamboo grown by OnlyMoso’s partners will be used for food, Kaiser said.

Eventually, the company would like to have 14,000 acres of U.S. farmland planted in bamboo, he said.

Fabrizio Pecci started the OnlyMoso company in northern Italy.

“In January 2014, the OnlyMoso project was presented to the agricultural community, proving a notable success and receiving the first orders of bamboo baby plants, which were planted in September 2014,” according to the company website. “In 2011, using his creativity and entrepreneurial talents, he transformed his company into one of the first suppliers capable of meeting the vast Southern European demand for bamboo products.”

Reeder said he hopes for the best with the introduction of bamboo.

“Anything they can come up with as an alternative would be great,” he said.

For more information of Mixon Fruit Farms, visit mixon.com. For more information on OnlyMoso, visit onlymoso.com.

This story was originally published October 29, 2017 at 8:30 AM with the headline "Organic bamboo introduced as new crop at Mixon Fruit Farms."