Wayne Simmons

He was born and raised in Plant City and is a sixth generation Floridian. He has been a resident of LaBelle for the past 31 years. He is an orange grove owner and president of LaBelle Fruit Co. LLC, a small grower with acreage in Hendry, Collier, and Hillsborough counties. He is past production manager of Cooperative Producers, Inc. and a former citrus nursery owner. He has been in the citrus industry for over 31 years. He is a licensed Florida Real Estate Broker and a Certified Crop Adviser. Simmons attended Abraham Baldwin Agriculture College and graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Fruit Crops in 1980. He was a member of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. He has held various leadership roles in the citrus industry being past president of the Florida Citrus Production Managers Association, Southwest Florida Research and Education Foundation, and currently a director of the Gulf Citrus Growers Association. He is a past president and director of the Hendry-Glades Farm Bureau.