Agriculture values topped $1.8 billion for the first time since 2014 and just the third time in 30 years in San Diego County’s annual crop report released earlier this year. The report covers the 2020 growing season, and reflects the mixed effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The total value of all agriculture crops and commodities rose just 0.8%, but that was enough to push total…
Loss of business due to mass closures of restaurants, schools and corporate cafeterias in response to COVID-19 shelter-in-place orders has small farms looking to collaborate as they try to adapt to the crisis by finding new markets and changing sales strategies, according to Ching Lee, an assistant editor of Ag Alert, published by the California Farm Bureau. During a webinar last week aimed at helping…
Three of San Diego County’s Top 10 Crops reached their highest total values in the past decade in the annual Crop Report released by the County this week, while total agriculture values dipped slightly after two straight years of increase. The total value of all agricultural crops and commodities slipped by one-quarter of 1% in the new report, which covers the 2018 growing season, decreasing…
Across San Diego County and California, farmers and ranchers face chronic problems in finding and hiring qualified and willing people to work in agriculture, according to a survey conducted by the California Farm Bureau Federation. The informal survey of Farm Bureau members showed that more than half of responding farmers had experienced employee shortages during the past year. The figure was higher among farmers who…
North County San Diego and Temecula account for one-third of all avocados grown in California. The state produces 95 percent of all avocados grown in the U.S. Over the last 10 years, avocado acreage in the county has dwindled from around 30,000 acres to 18,000 acres. and expected to drop to 15,000 acres in the next two years. Total avocado crop value was nearly $198…