The appellees, corporations of Florida and other states, and individuals, engaged in the canning of citrus fruits in that state, filed their bill in the District Court for Southern Florida against Nathan Mayo, as Commissioner of Agriculture of Florida, praying injunctions, temporary and final, to restrain him from cancelling their licenses as citrus fruit dealers, from enforcing against them a regulation made pursuant to a state statute, and from interfering with the conduct of their business by reason of their failure to comply with the statute.
On presentation of the bill and motion for temporary relief, the court issued a restraining order and convened a court of three judges. The Florida Citrus Commission was permitted to intervene as a defendant. After hearing on affidavits, filed by appellees and appellant Mayo, and, on evidence offered by the appellees, the court granted a temporary injunction pending final hearing. The Commissioner and the intervener have appealed.
The bill alleges the importance of the grapefruit canning industry in the State, and asserts that the appellees, in the conduct of their business, packed over sixty per cent. of the total grapefruit and grapefruit juice canned in the State in seasons prior to that of 1938-1939. It recites the adoption by the legislature of the Growers' Cost Guarantee Act, Chap. 16862 of the Acts of 1935, which, after declaring that the production and distribution of citrus fruit is a paramount industry of the State, upon which the prosperity of the State largely depends, and assigning reasons for the protection of the industry and the maintenance of prices commensurate with the cost of production of citrus fruit, authorizes the Commissioner of Agriculture, in his discretion, with the consent and advice of the Governor, to declare the existence of an emergency in the industry; and provides that, if he does so, then-upon petition of owners or controllers of fifty per cent. or more of the producing acreage of citrus fruit, and, upon procurement by the Florida Citrus Commission from producers, shippers, or handlers, not subject to the provisions of the act, of binding agreements to conform thereto and abide by its terms-the Commission shall determine and record annually the average reasonable cost, per standard backed box, of producing citrus fruit. The statute provides that, thereupon, every contract with a grower for the purchase of fruit is to be held to require the purchaser to pay the grower a price per box equal to such ascertained and recorded cost; and continues: 'Any contract, plan, scheme or device whereby it shall be attempted to preclude the grower from recovering such cost of production shall to that extent be held to be unlawful and against the public policy of this State, but in all other respects and particulars contracts of sale * * * shall be valid and binding and the terms thereof shall measure the rights of the respective parties.' Section 3. By its terms the act is to apply to any one or more of the varieties of citrus fruit.
The complaint further refers to the Bond and License Act, Chap. 16860, Laws of Florida, 1935, as amended by Chap. 17777, Acts of 1937, which requires every dealer (which term includes processors of citrus fruit) to take a license and provides that if the Commissioner determines that any dealer has violated the provisions of any applicable act he may suspend or revoke the license of the offender. Operation as a dealer without license is made a misdemeanor.
The bill alleges that the packing season for canning citrus products in Florida begins about November 1st of each year and continues until June or July of the following year; that preparations for canning include the ordering of cans, labels, contracting for purchase of fruit, securing labor, planning of factory operations, and obtaining orders for the product.
It is alleged that, under the Growers' Cost Guarantee Act, the appellant Mayo, as Commissioner of Agriculture, with the consent and advice of the Governor, declared an emergency in the citrus industry on January 13, 1939, and that the Citrus Commission passed a resolution January 16, 1939, reciting that more than fifty per cent. of the owners or controllers of producing acreage of grapefruit in the State have requested the Commission to determine the cost of production of grapefruit, fixing the cost per standard packed box at thirty-two cents for the season 1938-1939, and decreeing that every contract with a grower shall be held to require that the purchaser shall, in any event, pay the grower the amount so fixed as the cost of production.