california’s cash cow- agriculture !

California’s Cash Cow-California’s Cash Cow-AgricultureAgriculture!!

The Economic Impact of California AgricultureStandard C1.4

Agriculture’s Overall Agriculture’s Overall Dollar Dollar Value In California-Value In California-

• $36.6 BILLION in “cash receipts”, $100 BILLION in related economic activity (employment, fuel, supplies, etc.) (www.cdfa.ca.gov)

• Quick fact: Agriculture directly employs about than 2% of the American population, but feeds ALL of us- and people around the world!

Which state has the largest $$ value in Agriculture???

• Is it…TexasNebraskaCaliforniaKansasIowa

California is the nation’s #1 agricultural state in $$$$

Where Does California Where Does California Agriculture Rank Nationwide? Agriculture Rank Nationwide? 1. California: $36.2 Billion2. Iowa: $24.8 Billion3. Texas: $19.2 Billion4. Nebraska: $17.3 Billion5. Illinois: $16.4 Billion

….obviously, California does have Agriculture- not all of us are movie stars, surfers, or office workers!

Top 11 Commodities Top 11 Commodities Statewide (2006)Statewide (2006)

1. Milk/Cream: $6,924 million2. Grapes: $2,937 million3. Almonds: $2,343 million4. Nursery: $2,273 million5. Cattle & Calves: $1,822 Million6. Hay: $1,797 million7. Lettuce: $1,580 million8. Strawberries: $1,578 million9. Tomatoes: $1,139 Million10. Rice: $1,183 million11. Floriculture: $1,015 Million(From www.cde.ca.gov)

California’s Gross Cash California’s Gross Cash Receipts, 2006Receipts, 2006

Field Crops

Livestock/Poultry

Vegetables/Melons

Fruits/Nuts

Greenhouse/Nusery

Dollar Value of Floriculture Dollar Value of Floriculture for California Agriculturefor California Agriculture

• Keep in mind that this is just growing the flowers for florists to use, NOT the income that florists earn by creating arrangments

• California is the leading cut flower producer in the nation– California: $1.02 billion dollars– Florida: $922 million– Michigan– Texas – North Carolina

Some California Some California Specialties…Specialties…

• Artichokes: California provides nearly 100% of America’s supply!

• California is the only place in America where almonds are grown commercially.

• 90% of broccoli eaten in America comes from California.

• California produces 83% of the American strawberry supply

• California produces about 90% of the nation’s avocado crops

• Other specialty crops include:– Persimmons– Raisins– Olives– Walnuts– Pomegranates– Clingstone Peaches– Figs

What is the What is the Dollar Value of Dollar Value of Agriculture for the Top Agriculture for the Top Counties in California?Counties in California?

1. Fresno: $5,669,227 (grapes, almonds, tomatoes, poultry, cattle/calves)

2. Tulare: $5,017,995 (milk, oranges, cattle/calves, grapes, hay/silage)

3. Kern: $4,032,830 (almonds, grapes, milk, carrots, citrus)

4. Monterey: $3,829,123 (leaf lettuce, head lettuce, strawberries, nursery, broccoli)

5. Merced: $2,972,698 (milk, chickens, almonds, cattle/calves, tomatoes)

6. Stanislaus: $2,412,339 (Milk, almonds, cattle and calves, chickens, silage)

Commodities in Stanislaus Commodities in Stanislaus CountyCounty

• Stanislaus County is ranked 6th in the state for agriculture production

• Top commodities in Stanislaus County include:

– Milk– Almonds– Chickens– Cattle and Calves– Walnuts

The question is….The question is….

… Why do you think California produces so many “specialty,” high dollar crops like these?

Where Do California Where Do California Commodities Go?Commodities Go?

Destination Amount (in millions)

Top Exports

European Union (E.U.)

$2,071 Almonds, wine, pistachios

Canada $1,879 Lettuce, strawberries, processed tomatoes

Japan $964 Rice, almonds, hay

China/Hong Kong

$611 Cotton, almonds, table grapes

Mexico $562 Dairy, table grapes, processed tomatoes

Growing Regions in Growing Regions in CaliforniaCalifornia

• California is broken into production regions: – North Coast– Central Coast– South Coast– Sacramento Valley– San Joaquin Valley– Delta Region– Imperial Desert– Mountains

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• The North Coast Region– Counties: Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino,

Lake, Sonoma, Napa, Marin, Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara

– Commodities: Wine grapes, nursery products, apples, timber, livestock, pears, milk

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• Central Coast– Counties: San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San

Benito, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, Ventura– Commodities: Lettuce, celery, broccoli, beef

cattle, lemons, strawberries, artichokes, flowers and foliage, grapes

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• South Coast– Counties: Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego– Strawberries, tomatoes, bedding plants,

ornamental trees and shrubs, oranges, avocadoes

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• Sacramento Valley– Counties: Tehama, Glenn, Butte, Yuba,

Sutter, Yolo, Colusa, Sacramento– Commodities: Rice, tomatoes, sugar beets,

almonds, livestock, hay, walnuts, dried plums

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• San Joaquin Valley– Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Tulare,

Kern, Kings– Commodities: Cotton lint, oranges, cattle,

tomatoes, lettuce, table grapes, almonds, stone fruits, alfalfa hay, pistachios, poultry, milk and cream

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• Delta Region– Counties: San Joaquin, Contra Costa, Solano– Commodities: Milk, vegetables, asparagus,

corn, grapes, cherries, almonds, walnuts, cattle and calves, tomatoes

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• Imperial Valley– Counties: San Bernardino, Riverside, Imperial– Commodities: Alfalfa, lettuce, wheat, milk and

cream, table grapes, chicken, cattle, eggs, broccoli, vegetables

California’s Growing California’s Growing RegionsRegions

• Mountains– Counties: Inyo, Mono, Mariposa, Tuolumne,

Alpine, Calaveras, Amador, El Dorado, Placer, Nevada, Sierra, Plumes, Lassen, Shasta, Modoc, Trinity, Siskyou

– Commodities: Livestock, hay, Christmas trees, potatoes, timber, pasture, grapes, nursery products

California’s Top ExportsCalifornia’s Top Exports

1. Almonds 6. Walnuts2. Wine 7. Oranges, Fresh & Juice3. Dairy and Products 8. Pistachios4. Cotton 9. Tomatoes, Processed5. Table Grapes 10. Strawberries

Comparing Top Commodities Comparing Top Commodities & Top Exports…& Top Exports…

Top Commodities:• Milk/Cream: $4,492 Million• Grapes: $3,033 Million• Nursery: $2,775 Million• Almonds: $2,040 Million• Cattle & Calves: $1,676

Million• Lettuce: $1,608 Million• Strawberries: $1,194 Million• Tomatoes: $1,139 Million• Floriculture: $1,020 Million• Hay: $1,003 Million (From www.cde.ca.gov)

Top Exports:1. Almonds (ranked 4)2. Wine (not ranked)3. Dairy and Dairy Products

(ranked 1)4. Cotton (ranked 14)5. Table Grapes (ranked 2)6. Walnuts (ranked 15)7. Oranges, Fresh and Juice

(ranked 11)8. Pistachios (ranked 18)9. Tomatoes, Processed (ranked

8) 10.Strawberries (ranked 7)

Why is there such a difference? What do you think?

Changing Commodities In Changing Commodities In California- California- WhatWhat and and WhyWhy

• What: Cotton: Cotton has continued to decrease in gross dollar value in California for the last decade or so (according to employees of JG Boswell)– In 2002, ranked 9, in 2004, ranked 11, and in

2006 ranked 14. Note that dollar value has held steady- California cotton is noted for high quality

• Why? Global competition, water availability

Changing Commodities In Changing Commodities In California- California- WhatWhat and and WhyWhy

• What: Dairies in Southern California: Chino especially was noted for having a high percentage of dairies. – (Note that the loss of dairies in Chino did not

really effect the overall value of dairy in California, but it did impact the county ranking). Some dairies did move out of state.

• Why: Population growth, land value!

Comparing California Comparing California Agriculture to Other StatesAgriculture to Other States

California: • Wheat- ranked 20th in

the nation, farmed 315,000 acres

• Corn (Grain)- ranked 30th in nation, farmed 110,000 acres

• Kansas: Wheat: ranked 1st in the nation, 400 billion bushels

• Iowa: Corn: ranked 1st in the nation, farmed on 12.4 million acres of land- Iowa grows more corn than some countries like Argentina!

Issues in California Issues in California AgricultureAgriculture

• There are so many current issues impacting California agriculture- it could a class on its own! In summary, however…– Water– Unfriendly legislation– Urban sprawl– Rising land and production costs

Forecasts for California Forecasts for California Agriculture…Agriculture…

• What impacts the “forecast” for commodities in California?

• What impacts agriculture as a whole in California? – What measures can we take to prevent or

solve these problems?– … or is there a solution?

Want More Information?Want More Information?

• California Department of Food and Agriculture: www.cdfa.ca.gov

• California Farm Bureau Federation: www.cfbf.com

• Google searches!• Grower’s Commissions:

– www.calstrawberry.com– www.avocado.org– www.almondboard.com– www.realcaliforniacheese.com