Palmetto Poaching Can Be Big Business
Plus, a water shortage, new local judges, and the day's news roundup.
To many of us, they’re just visual background noise. Saw Palmetto, the ubiquitous palm shrubs that once seemed to cover half of Hillsborough County. But to poachers these plants are an increasingly attractive target. Read all about it in today’s Bay Area Navigator.
BRIEFS
Rainfall Deficit: The Tampa Bay region is now in a Stage 1 water shortage due to below-average regional rainfall on a 12-month rolling average, according to Tampa Bay Water. There is sufficient drinking water supplies to serve the region. The region enters a Stage 1 water shortage when the rainfall deficit is more than 5 inches. Regional rainfall totals averaged 8.3 inches below normal over the past 12 months. Here are some ways to conserve water: know your watering days; skip watering when it’s raining or rain is in the forecast; check for broken parts in irrigation systems and blocked sprinkler heads; delay resodding or put in new plants until the summer rainy season; install smart irrigation controllers to monitor soil or weather conditions; install a shallow well for irrigation; and check for household leaks, such as a leaky toilet flapper.
New Judges: Michael Hooi and Joseph Tompkin, both of Tampa, have been appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to serve as judges on the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court. Hooi has served as a Hillsborough County Court Judge since 2021, was an associate attorney at Stichter, Riedel, Blain & Postler, P.A., and fills the judicial vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Barbas. Hooi earned his bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University and his juris doctor from the University of Florida. A Hillsborough County Court Judge since 2021, Tompkins served as an assistant United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida. He earned his bachelor’s degree and his juris doctor from Ave Maria University. Tompkins fills the judicial vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Corvo.
Idalia Assistance: Hillsborough County residents and renters whose homes were damaged by Hurricane Idalia can apply for Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance. To apply, visit DisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA app for smartphones, or call 800-621-3362. Phone lines are open from 7 a.m.-11 p.m. daily. The assistance could include financial help for temporary lodging, basic home repairs, and other disaster-related expenses.
Winning Ticket: Tampa resident Kiet Tran, 53, is $1 million richer. The Florida Lottery announced Oct. 4 he had claimed a $1 million prize from the $1,000,000 A Year of Life Spectacular Scratch-Off game in the Tampa district. He chose to receive his winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment of $640,000. He bought the winning ticket from Active Food Mart, 1401 W. Waters Ave., in Tampa, and the retailer will receive a $2,000 bonus commission for selling the winning ticket.
Got news? Send it here.
TODAY’S SPONSOR
The Navigator is sponsored by Mary’s Little Lamb Preschool at 7311 N. Armenia Ave. in Tampa. We are a nationally accredited preschool established in 1959.
Free Childcare and a paycheck. We are currently seeking a qualified toddler teacher or teaching assistant. The ideal candidate must be creative, energetic, dependable, nurturing, patient, have a passion about the growth and development of the children, and be a team player. Requirements: pass a level 2 background screening, high school diploma or higher, completed or willing to start and complete the DCF 45 training hours, get CPR/First aid certified.
Interested in sponsoring the Navigator? We need to talk.
CURRENTS
BAY AREA
Hillsborough teachers’ union says it has agreed to tentative contract with school district. Spectrum Bay News 9
School voucher money is rolling in, but private schools, families are still concerned. WUSF
Cooler air is on the way this weekend. Spectrum Bay News 9
A look into 'forever chemicals' in Tampa Bay's drinking water, as a federal study determines limits. WUSF
Tampa General Hospital invests $4.4 million in new training lab for USF College of Nursing. WUSF
Layoffs at Gale Healthcare in Tampa came without warning, employees say. Tampa Bay Business Journal $ (subscription required)
More than 100 local vendors will gather at the new Coachman Park on Oct. 14. That’s So Tampa
Tampa’s new Tesla rideshare service launches later this month. TBay Today
Prescribed fires scheduled for Hillsborough County. Tampa Free Press
Hillsborough County commissioner pushing for change following deadly train crash in Plant City. ABC Action News
Iconic Tampa restaurant Mel's Hot Dogs has new owners. Creative Loafing
Details of potential deal to build a new Tampa Bay Rays stadium are released. WUSF
Rays eliminated from playoffs after 7-1 loss in Game 2 of Wild Card Series. ABC Action News
As Rays are swept off the field, their empty seats hint at a much larger problem. The Athletic $ (subscription required)
FLORIDA
Coral researchers see ‘mass mortality’ amid Florida Keys bleaching crisis. Tampa Bay Times $ (subscription required)
How red-state politics are shaving years off American lives. The Washington Post $ (subscription required)
Florida wants to more than double size of Mosaic’s ‘radioactive roads’ plan. WUSF
Wildfire smoke from Canada creates unhealthy air quality in Florida. The New York Times $ (subscription required)
Carl Hiaasen got canceled at schools over new book, ‘Wrecker.’ Here’s why. Tampa Bay Times $ (subscription required)
Famous authors, new office, millions of bucks back anti-book banning campaign in Florida. Florida Today
Florida State adds women's lacrosse after a report showed school was not Title IX compliant. The Washington Post $ (subscription required)
Dengue continues spreading in Miami-Dade County for the fourth month in a row. Florida Phoenix
Florida announces more locations, dates for Hurricane victims to receive federal benefits. Florida Phoenix
Florida bill encourages keeping cash in the flow. The Center Square
Justice Department goes after China-based companies with Florida indictments in fentanyl fight. The Center Square
Florida sues Biden administration in new dispute over unions. Politico
After campaign donations, Gov. DeSantis reappoints old foe to Citizens Insurance board. Florida Politics
POLITICS
Suspended prosecutor Andrew Warren closer to running for his former job in Hillsborough. Florida Phoenix
DeSantis announces $15 million fundraising haul, will move staff to Iowa. Politico
Trump Announces $45.5 Million Fund-Raising Haul, Tripling DeSantis. The New York Times $ (subscription required)
Poll: Ron DeSantis trails Donald Trump by 35 points in Florida. Florida Politics
Oddsmakers: Michelle Obama is a better bet to become President than Ron DeSantis. Florida Politics
Matt Gaetz just positioned himself for Florida governor. Politico
COMMENTARY
As Florida county grapples with bear encounters, one lawmaker calls for a bear hunt. Florida Phoenix
The Victory Republicans May Be Squandering. Sen. Rick Scott in The Wall Street Journal $ (subscription required)
Reporter
Palmetto Poachers
One of Florida’s most ubiquitous and unappreciated plants may be more valuable than you realize.
By Judith M. Gallman
About eight or nine years ago, Tony Rentz was a forestry agricultural consultant who was managing a 2,000-acre Volusia County farm that lost a valuable saw palmetto berry crop to theft in one night.
“We lost probably $30,000 of saw palmetto berries we had intended to harvest,” Rentz said. “Hundreds of people came in overnight, and our fields were cleaned. So I decided to make a change.”
Today, Rentz heads up the Saw Palmetto Market LLC, a saw palmetto berry harvesting and brokerage company that promotes the ethical harvesting of saw palmetto berries for a sustainable future.
Berries from the ubiquitous Florida palms have multiple uses, mostly as dietary supplements for conditions as varied as hair loss and reduction of an enlarged prostate gland, Rentz said.
Consequently, they also are increasingly valued by criminals, who have been known to poach the berries from public and private lands across the state.
“Unfortunately, people will harvest in areas where they don’t have landowner permission or in areas owned by the state or federal government — one of the reasons for the permit,” Rentz said. Some “bad actors” without permits trespass and cut locks on gates or down fences, which lets livestock such as cattle escape, a public safety issue, Rentz said, as well as a loss of a commodity to the landowner.
Rentz was an early supporter of the state’s 2018 successful effort to name saw palmetto berries a commercially exploited crop, which requires a permit from the state department of agriculture to harvest them.
The permits are free, and about 2,927 such permits have been approved, according to a department representative. The permits give the harvester permission from the landowner to harvest saw palmetto berries, which look like hard brown-green grapes when ripe. People who own their own saw palmetto berry crops, including farmers who look to the crop as an extra income commodity, must apply for the permit, too.
“It was a way to quantify and control the harvest and distribution of the berries,” Rentz said. “It required someone to have written landowner permission to harvest saw palmetto berries. It’s a free permit, and you can apply online. It establishes like a chain of custody that follows the berries from origin to point of destination.”
Failing to have a permit and picking the berries anyway is a misdemeanor, though a volume of berries weighing a certain amount can increase the penalty to a felony, Rentz said. Other offenses such as trespassing or vandalism to gain access through chained gates or fences are often attached to permitless pickers.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission seems to take illegal harvesting seriously enough, with its park rangers and other law enforcement officers often issuing citations to people who harvest without permits. Some of the more notable busts of recent saw palmetto berry harvesting occurred in mid-August In Hamilton County, Collier County, and Indian River County. Suspects had berry hauls of 200 pounds, 7,000 pounds (valued at $10,000), and 800 pounds respectively. Typically the berries are returned to where they were picked or to the state or federal entity controlling the land (typically, state parks or wildlife management areas, for instance) where the harvest occurred.
The Collier County case was at the Bear Island Campground in the Big Cypress Preserve/Wildlife Management Area. Sheriff’s deputies and rangers, according to FWC reports, stopped a vehicle leaving the area and discovered 44 bags of saw palmetto berries, eight backpacks, a chain saw, bolt cutters, and an extensive tool kit. The subjects fled on foot, but the driver was detained, arrested, and taken to Naples Jail.
In general, Rentz said, the saw palmetto berry crop is not a big business. “It’s a spot market, maybe two months out of the year.” The berries ripen in South Florida first, normally in July. Harvesters — sometimes migrant workers who also pick oranges, grapefruit, watermelon, and strawberries — follow the ripening of the berries as they peak, moving farther north as ripening continues through August. Harvesting usually ends in September or October. The berries are difficult to harvest and must be picked by hand. They only grow in Florida, Southeastern Louisiana, Georgia, and the Carolinas, and production can vary wildly annually.
“We export them,” Rentz said. “There is a large European demand for saw palmetto berries. They get sent around the world.” Typically, they are harvested, sent to be dried, then processed with oils extracted.
“It is a wild commodity, and it is very dependent upon the weather and Mother Nature,” Rentz said, adding the price per pound of the berry can range from $1 to $2 based on supply and demand and daily price fluctuations. The denser the berry, the more valuable it is, since weight determines price.
“You can fill up a 5-gallon bucket and maybe have 40 pounds,” he said. “It really varies. They can be very dense, and one acre could yield as much as 400 pounds or 2 pounds. We are so dependent on Mother Nature. If this was a business model, you’d probably starve.”
Rentz is satisfied with the permitting process for now. Once a year, he partners with the University of Florida, the state Department of Agriculture, the Farm Bureau, and the Volusia County Extension Office to educate harvesters, landowners, and industry leaders “as a way to roundtable information and stay up to date.”
“The current permit system is a great start, but it’s still a system that needs some work to refine it,” Renz said. “It kind of gives an idea about how much is harvested, and it definitely helps on the trespassing.”