Karen Overstreet, county agriculture commissioner, announced the release of the county’s 2015 annual crop report July 26 at the San Benito County Board of Supervisors’ meeting. She sent BenitoLink an advance copy and said the report will be uploaded to the Agricultural Commission’s website July 27.
In a letter included in the report sent to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, as well as the supervisors, Overstreet stated that in 2015, the overall value of the county’s agriculture increased nearly 11 percent over the previous year, totalling $360,593,079. Of all the crops, salad mix/baby leaf products experienced the biggest gain. Processing tomato acreage decreased slightly as more ground was transferred to production of leafy greens and other vegetables.
The news wasn’t all good, however, as the cherry crop was devastated by late spring rains. Warm weather hindered other commodities, as vine and tree crop yields were below average. Walnut yields were inconsistent and the quality also suffered.
Overstreet cautioned that all figures were gross values and they do not represent net profits to the producers. The figures are also periodically averaged or rounded in order to achieve the end value.
Summarizing the report, commodity values for the county increased between 2014 and 2015 by $32,332,079 gross sales dollars. By commodities, the differences in values were: field crops increased $5,480,000; fruit and nuts decreased $830,018; vegetable and row crops increased $3,055,309; cattle increased $2,915,000; miscellaneous. livestock and poultry was down nearly 50 percent at $5,786,000. By percentage of the total agriculture value, vegetables and row crops represented 71 percent (one reason the area is known as the salad bowl of the country); fruit and nuts 12 percent; field crops 8 percent; cattle 7 percent; and miscellaneous. livestock and poultry 2 percent.
The top 10 commodities were: miscellaneous vegetables, valued at $65.5 million; lettuce, salad mix, $37.8 million; spinach, $36.7 million; Romaine lettuce, $31.6 million; peppers $30.5 million; wine grapes, $18.4 million; calves, $18 million; miscellaneous fruits and nuts, $15.8 million; kale, $12.9 million; and pasture/rangeland, $11.4 million.
Vegetable and row crop productions and values were: broccoli, 6,053 tons, $6.3 million; celery, 20,880 tons, which was down over 3,000 tons from 2014, valued at $6.01 million; kale, 11,625 tons, up by 4,000 tons over 2014, valued at $12.9 million; iceberg lettuce, 13,808 tons, for $4.8 million; Romaine lettuce, 46,261 tons valued at $31.6 million; salad mix, 21,580 tons, at $37.8 million, representing a $5 million increase over 2014; onions, 14,285 tons, at $8.9 million, down $2 million; peppers, 42,312 tons, at $30.5 million; spinach, 14,265 tons, at $36.7 million, a $5 million increase; canning tomatoes, 46,198 tons, at $3.7 million; and market tomatoes, 9,835 tons, at $8.6 million.
Fruits and nuts generally saw increases in production, with walnuts experiencing more than 50 percent growth. Apple production decreased slightly and saw sales of $1.8 million; apricots decreased by about 800 tons and were valued at $1.8 million; cherries experienced a dramatic loss because of late rains, decreasing from 605 tons in 2014 to 144 tons this year, with a value of $540,000; wine grape production was up slightly and valued at $18.4 million; olive production was down nearly 50 percent for a value of $72,800, representing a loss of over $74,000; and walnuts increased in tonnage by 845 tons, with a dramatic increase in value of $4.5 million.
During 2015, county biologists inspected and certified 2,240 agricultural shipments to 63 countries. The top export country was Mexico with 841 shipments. Canada received 507 shipments; Japan, 153; Italy, 103; and the Netherlands 68. The next highest 10 countries to receive commodities from the county were: Saudi Arabia, 35; China, 33; France, 31 India, 31; Australia, 29; Taiwan, 27;Turkey, 26; Lebanon, 25; South Africa and Jordan, each with 24.
The county has 77 certified registered organic growers who represent an important part of agricultural economy as consumer demand and grower returns continue to increase. Some of the most popular and highest grossing commodities include salad mix varieties, spinach, and walnuts. The highest grossing crop was salad mix, valued at $62.4 million, for an increase of over $6 million from 2014. This year’s crops were valued at $111,330.448, an increase of more than $9 million from 2014.
The only bug in the report is an actual bug, the Asian Citrus Psyllid, a pest that feeds on citrus trees and can even kill the trees through a disease called Huanglongbing, better known as citrus greening disease. First spotted in Florida in 1998, it has been detected in Hollister. It feeds on all citrus trees. The county agricultural commission is cooperating with the California Department of Food and Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture in an extensive survey and treatment program. Growers and residents are being asked to be on the lookout for this pest. Visit www.californiacitrusthreat.org or www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/acp/ for more information.
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