Updated 5:40 p.m. Sept. 10, 2014
The value of the region’s agriculture industry last year was $1.85 billion, up 6 percent from 2012, according to an annual report released Wednesday by San Diego County officials.
The most valuable crop, for the fifth year in a row, was ornamental trees and shrubs, according to the report prepared by Ha Dang, the county’s agricultural commissioner.
The crop accounted for $424.9 million, or 23 percent of the county’s agricultural production. Total revenue for the crop was well above the $387 million of the year before.
Measured on a per-acre basis, however, indoor flower and foliage plants was king, with a value of $457,000 an acre and overall income of $329.5 million, according to the report.
“In a recovering economy, this is a testimony of the determination and resourcefulness of our local growers, and all who support our thriving agricultural community,” Dang said.
Among other leading crops, measured in total sales across major categories, were fruit and nuts, up 23 percent to $415.6 million; vegetables and vine products, down 9 percent to $170.7 million; and livestock and poultry, up 10 percent to $84.7 million.
The fruit and nut category received a major boost from avocados, which shot up 25 percent in value to $198 million following a poor yield in 2012.
Other more specific crops covered in the report were bedding plants, valued at $203.7 million; tomatoes, $92.7 million; lemons, $80 million; eggs, $76.3 million, miscellaneous berries, $34.3 million; herbaceous perennials, $26.7 million; and cacti and succulents, $26.5 million.
More than 305,000 acres in San Diego County are devoted to agriculture, spread across more than 5,700 farms — the most of any county in the U.S., according to the report.
County agriculture officials said local products were exported to 48 countries, with the vast majority of shipments going south to Mexico.
— City News Service
