The Brazilian Enterprise of Agropecuary Research (EMBRAPA) and the University of Florida (UF) are working toward using satellite images in citrus production for both countries, local media said on Monday.

The two sides are expected to develop a prototype system for measuring production of the fruit by the end of 2007, based on satellite pictures provided by the UF and weather information from EMBRAPA and other public institutions in Brazil.

The joint project is aimed at improving calculation of orange trees and productivity in both Florida and Sao Paulo. Together the two states boast 40 percent of the world's orange production.

In 2005, Brazil exported 1 billion U.S. dollars worth of oranges and their derivatives.

The joint initiative was born in October 2006 with a visit by EMBRAPA's researcher Joao Camargo Neto to the UF, which in turn presented a NASA-backed model in November to an EMBRAPA branch in Sao Paulo. EMBRAPA has its own model with advantages in measuring the plant's diameter.

Source: Xinhua