Happy Halloween from the UF/IFAS Food and Resource Economics Department!
With millions around the United States planning to celebrate the holiday today, there will be plenty of candy and treats around to celebrate the spooky season! 
But how do these treats get so sweet? While the sweeteners used will depend on the product, when it comes to sugar, sugarcane is one of the primary raw material sources.
Sugarcane is also a major part of Florida’s agricultural industry. Florida, Louisiana, and Texas are the main producers of commercial sugarcane in the United States, with Florida ranking first in the nation in Cash Receipts by Commodity (USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2023).
That is why, for October, the FRE Lunch podcast sat down with Master of Agribusiness alumnus Joshua Jantz to learn more about how the implementation of precision agriculture technology is helping maximize efficiency and sustainability in the production of sugarcane, one of the sweeteners responsible for many of our favorite Halloween Treats!
Jantz, who holds dual bachelor’s degrees from the University of Florida in Animal Sciences and Agricultural Operations Management, is currently a Production Supervisor at U.S. Sugar. He recently completed his Master of Agribusiness through the Food and Resource Economics Department, where he used the capstone project to apply the course material to his work at U.S. Sugar in adopting and refining innovative uses of precision agriculture throughout the sugarcane production process.
To learn more, listen to the full episode now on our website, or on your favorite podcasting platforms.
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