Venerable Fort Myers agriculture and land management company Alico Inc. has largely left the citrus industry due to the disease called greening that has decimated Florida citrus crops in recent years.
With its last major citrus harvest complete in April, Alico is completing its transformation into a diversified land management company, with a focus on other forms of agriculture and land management operations.
The company’s prospects in the next five years include $335 million to $380 million in residential and commercial real estate development, CEO John Kiernan told investors on a May 14 conference call to discuss second-quarter earnings.
The day before at a luncheon in Fort Myers for the Real Estate Investment Society, Kiernan and Executive Vice President of Real Estate Mitch Hutchcraft highlighted the company’s changing direction.
“They’re doing what they have to do as a publicly owned company,” said Fritz Roka, director of the Center for Agribusiness and assistant professor at Florida Gulf Coast University, who attended the luncheon. “When you have 1,000 people a day moving to Florida, they have to live somewhere.”
Alico’s development plans include a 4,660-acre master-planned development, Corkscrew Grove Villages, in Collier County near both Lee and Hendry counties. Alico also is pursuing development on 610 acres in Highland County’s Bonnet Lake area, 240 acres in Polk’s Saddlebag Grove and 80 acres in Hendry County’s LaBelle.
“They’re each unique opportunities,” Kiernan said.
Corkscrew Grove Villages consists of two 1,500-acre villages with about 4,500 homes each and 6,000 acres of permanent conservation areas. It would include 560,000 square feet of commercial space, blending retail, dining, office, medical and light industrial buildings.
Alico launched its entitlement approval process with an application to Collier County for the first two villages. Collier Commissioners are expected to decide in 2026, along with South Florida Water Management District and the Army Corps of Engineers. Construction could begin in 2028 or 2029 if all approvals are granted.
Despite its lack of citrus operations, about 75% of Alico’s activity is expected to be diversified agricultural operations, Kiernan said, including potential sod production, sand-mining and leases to grow seasonal crops, such as corn, sugar cane and a variety of fruits and vegetables.
“With these strategic initiatives well underway, I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made in positioning Alico for sustainable long-term growth,” he said.
It was not without pain. Ending Alico Citrus, once one of the nation’s largest citrus operations, meant reducing its workforce from 200 to 25 employees.
Alico reported a loss of $111.4 million and $14.58 per share in its second fiscal quarter (January to March), due in large part to its plan to end declining citrus operations. It was further exacerbated by losses due to Hurricane Milton. The company also announced that it could potentially sell $50 million or more in land in fiscal 2025. Alico expects to generate $20 million in revenue this year and reported that its present holdings could be worth $650 to $750 million.
