Quick Take
Santa Cruz County’s 2024 crop report shows local farm production up 13% — led by booming berry, nursery and produce yields — while timber values fell nearly 20%.
It was a good year for much of Santa Cruz County’s agricultural industry, with good growing conditions and strong prices boosting the value of berries, produce and nursery stock, even as the timber industry saw a downturn.
According to the 2024 crop report, released Wednesday, the estimated gross production value – the overall worth of the crops, before subtracting farmers’ costs – of the county’s agricultural commodities increased 13.3% last year over 2023, totaling just under $742 million. Farmers expanded their acreage and increased harvests, which drove the change, David Sanford, the county’s agricultural commissioner, said in a media release.
“Despite challenges related to labor, markets and weather, growers expanded acreage and harvests, helping to drive a strong year for local agriculture,” said Sanford.
The total value of berries — the county’s top crop — rose by 18% from 2023 to 2024, due to growers alternating or converting their fields to berry production from other crops, and a long growing season with warm temperatures and few negative impacts from heat, cold or rain. Berry production – mainly strawberries, raspberries and blackberries — represents 60% of the total value of all of the county’s crops, at $446 million, with strawberries leading the way at an estimated value of $219 million across 2,640 acres.
“Strawberries in particular benefited from a long growing season and a good market price,” Sanford told Lookout.
Nursery crops and vegetables, the county’s second- and third-most-lucrative crops after berries, also saw significant growth, with increases of 12% and 8%, respectively. Nursery crops refers to cut flowers, Christmas trees and indoor potted plants grown for sale at garden stores, and landscaping. Apples also saw a 12% bump, due to a healthy harvest and higher price per ton, while wine grapes held steady from the previous year at 600 tons of production and a value of $5.7 million.
The value of timber dropped by 19.8%, from nearly $8 million to $6.3 million, although significant swings aren’t unusual, said Sanford: “It’s a commodity that’s more difficult for us to track. It can be volatile year to year depending on the value of a board foot and demand.”
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