Vegetables ISSN: 1931-2857 Released January 11, 2011, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Fresh Vegetable Harvested Area Down 1 Percent From Last Year Spring Onion Planted Acreage Up 14 Percent Strawberry Planted Acreage Up 1 Percent The prospective area for harvest of 11 selected fresh market vegetables during the winter quarter is forecast at 155,200 acres, down 1 percent from last year. Acreage declined for snap beans, broccoli, sweet corn, and bell peppers. Acreage increased for cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, and head lettuce. Area harvested for spinach and tomatoes remains unchanged. Area planted for spring onions, at 32,400 acres, is up 14 percent from 2010. California, Georgia, and Texas increased planted acreage from 2010. Strawberry area planted for the major States (California, Florida, and Oregon) in 2011 is forecast at 50,000 acres, up 1 percent from 2010. Contents Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 (Domestic Units) 3 Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 (Metric Units) 3 Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - States and United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 4 Spring Onions and Strawberries for Fresh Market Area Planted and Harvested by Crop - States and United States: 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 5 Fresh Market Crop Comments 6 Statistical Methodology 7 Information Contacts 7 Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 (Domestic Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Harvested Crop :-------------------------------------------------------- : 2009 : 2010 : 2011 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : acres : Snap beans ............: 12,000 11,300 9,000 Broccoli 1/ ...........: 26,000 25,500 24,500 Cabbage ...............: 11,720 11,840 12,400 Carrots ...............: 16,200 16,600 18,100 Cauliflower 1/ ........: 9,000 8,500 9,200 Celery 1/ .............: 7,200 7,100 7,300 Sweet corn ............: 8,800 8,400 6,700 Head lettuce ..........: 47,000 51,000 52,500 Bell pepper 1/ ........: 6,800 6,500 6,000 Spinach ...............: 600 1,000 1,000 Tomatoes ..............: 9,300 8,500 8,500 : Total winter crop .....: 154,620 156,240 155,200 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Includes fresh market and processing. Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 (Metric Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Harvested Crop :-------------------------------------------------------- : 2009 : 2010 : 2011 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : hectares : Snap beans ............: 4,860 4,570 3,640 Broccoli 1/ ...........: 10,520 10,320 9,910 Cabbage ...............: 4,740 4,790 5,020 Carrots ...............: 6,560 6,720 7,320 Cauliflower 1/ ........: 3,640 3,440 3,720 Celery 1/ .............: 2,910 2,870 2,950 Sweet corn ............: 3,560 3,400 2,710 Head lettuce ..........: 19,020 20,640 21,250 Bell pepper 1/ ........: 2,750 2,630 2,430 Spinach ...............: 240 400 400 Tomatoes ..............: 3,760 3,440 3,440 : Total winter crop 2/ ..: 62,570 63,230 62,810 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Includes fresh market and processing. 2/ Total may not add due to rounding. Selected Fresh Market Vegetables Area Harvested by Crop - States and United States: Winter Season 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Usual : Harvested Crop and State : harvest :-------------------------------------- : period : 2009 : 2010 : 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------- acres ------------ : Snap beans : Florida .............January-March 12,000 11,300 9,000 : Broccoli 1/ : California ..........January-March 26,000 25,500 24,500 : Cabbage : Florida .............January-March 4,900 4,800 5,000 Texas ..............December-March 6,820 7,040 7,400 : United States .......: 11,720 11,840 12,400 : Carrots : California ..........January-March 15,500 16,000 17,500 Texas ..............December-March 700 600 600 : United States .......: 16,200 16,600 18,100 : Cauliflower 1/ : California ..........January-March 9,000 8,500 9,200 : Celery 1/ : California ..........January-March 7,200 7,100 7,300 : Sweet corn : Florida .............January-March 8,800 8,400 6,700 : Head lettuce : Arizona - western ..November-April 32,000 34,000 35,000 California ..........January-March 15,000 17,000 17,500 : United States .......: 47,000 51,000 52,500 : Bell pepper 1/ : Florida .............January-March 6,800 6,500 6,000 : Spinach : Texas ..............December-March 600 1,000 1,000 : Tomatoes : Florida .............January-March 9,300 8,500 8,500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Includes fresh market and processing. Spring Onions and Strawberries for Fresh Market Area Planted and Harvested by Crop - States and United States: 2009, 2010, and Forecasted 2011 [Blank data cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun.] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Area planted : Area harvested Crop, season, :----------------------------------------------------------- and State : : : : : : : 2009 : 2010 : 2011 : 2009 : 2010 : 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : acres : Spring onions 1/ : Arizona 2/ .......: 1,600 (NA) (NA) 1,600 (NA) (NA) California .......: 6,200 6,400 6,900 6,000 6,200 Georgia ..........: 11,800 12,000 12,500 10,800 11,100 11,500 Texas ............: 10,300 10,000 13,000 9,100 8,600 11,200 : United States ....: 29,900 28,400 32,400 27,500 25,900 : Strawberries 3/ : California .......: 39,800 38,600 38,000 39,800 38,600 38,000 Florida ..........: 8,800 8,800 9,900 8,800 8,800 9,900 Oregon ...........: 2,200 2,100 2,100 1,700 1,900 1,900 : United States ....: 50,800 49,500 50,000 50,300 49,300 49,800 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (NA) Not available. 1/ Primarily fresh market. 2/ Estimates discontinued in 2010. 3/ Includes fresh market and processing. Fresh Market Crop Comments Snap beans: Florida area for harvest is forecast at 9,000 acres, down 20 percent from last year. Unseasonably cold temperatures delayed crop development. In south Florida, some growers reported 80 percent damage to their crop. Broccoli: California harvested area is forecast at 24,500 acres, down 4 percent from 2010. Unseasonably cold weather limited broccoli production. However, quality and size of the winter broccoli crop is reported to be good. Cabbage: Winter area for harvest is forecast at 12,400 acres, 5 percent above 2010. In Florida, planting for the winter crop began in the Hastings area during the first week of November. In Texas, crop development and quality are reported to be excellent due to a mild and cool spring. Carrots: Winter harvested area is forecast at 18,100 acres, up 9 percent from last year. In California, planting of winter carrots is underway. In Texas, the carrot crop is progressing well. Cauliflower: California harvested area is forecast at 9,200 acres, up 8 percent from last year. Quality and size of the cauliflower crop is reported to be good. Celery: The winter celery crop for harvest in California is forecast at 7,300 acres, up 3 percent from last year. Quality of the winter celery crop is reported to be good. Sweet corn: Florida harvested area is forecast at 6,700 acres, 20 percent below last year. Planting of the winter sweet corn crop was underway by early November. The State experienced unseasonably cold and freezing temperatures during December. Crop loss was reported at nearly 80 percent in western Palm Beach County due to the cold snap. Head lettuce: Area for harvest is forecast at 52,500 acres, up 3 percent from last year. Harvest in Arizona began in mid-November. Harvest of California's iceberg lettuce crop began around the third week of November. Onions: Growers intend to plant 32,400 acres of spring onions for 2011, up 14 percent from 2010. California onion growers began planting in October and continued through mid-December. Planting conditions have been favorable for the spring onion crop. In Georgia, the crop is progressing well. No disease problems have been reported. In Texas, spring onion plantings were on schedule. Market prices are reported to be excellent. Bell peppers: Winter area for harvest in Florida is forecast at 6,000 acres, down 8 percent from last year. Unseasonably cold and freezing temperatures delayed crop growth, while some growers reported leaf burn damage to their crop. Spinach: Harvested area of winter spinach in Texas is forecast at 1,000 acres, unchanged from 2010. Development of the Baby leaf spinach is well underway. Strawberries: Planted area for the major States (California, Florida, and Oregon) is forecast at 50,000 acres, up 1 percent from 2010. In Florida, producers in Hillsborough County began planting by October. California's strawberry harvest started slowly this year due to wet and cool weather. Tomatoes: Florida winter tomato harvested area is forecast at 8,500 acres, unchanged from 2010. Tomato growers in Ruskin were able to harvest about 90 percent of their crop before the cold snap. Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Acreage and production information included in this report are collected six times during the year. Acreage forecasts are obtained on a quarterly basis for fresh market and processing vegetables. For fresh market vegetables, growers are surveyed seasonally for estimates of crops such as onions and strawberries. Producers growing multiple fresh market crops are surveyed at seasonal intervals in major producing States for the remaining vegetable crops in the program. Data are collected by telephone interviews, mail out, faxed questionnaires, and personal interviews. Data accuracy and reducing respondent burden are taken into account in conducting the surveys. The most desirable survey method is to do a complete enumeration of growers. When this is not possible, a mail inquiry, sent to a sample of growers, is conducted. Due to the variable nature of the vegetable industry, mail lists are frequently updated to ensure complete coverage. Summary and Estimation Procedures: The vegetable surveys collect data in the major producing States for each respective commodity. States with a small number of growers survey all known commercial producers of vegetable commodities. States with a large number of producers contact a sample of growers to get production data. Sampling may still result in a census for some vegetables. Revision Policy: Quarterly vegetables reports are released by season (winter in January, spring in April, summer in July, and fall in October) and they are not subject to revisions. At the end of the calendar year, all producers have the opportunity to update or provide any additional data corresponding to any of the weeks for the current and previous year. After these data are incorporated with previously reported data, final seasonal estimates are published in the Vegetables Annual Summary. Reliability: The vegetable survey is subject to non-sampling errors such as omission, duplication, imputation for missing data, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. These errors cannot be measured directly, but are minimized through rigid quality controls in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity statisticians in the Crops Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@nass.usda.gov Lance Honig, Chief, Crops Branch............................................. (202) 720-2127 Jorge Garcia-Pratts, Head, Fruits, Vegetables and Special Crops Section...... (202) 720-2127 Debbie Flippin - Fresh and Processing Vegetables, Onions, Strawberries.. (202) 720-2157 Fred Granja - Apples, Apricots, Cherries, Plums, Prunes, Tobacco ....... (202) 720-4288 Dawn Keen - Floriculture, Maple Syrup, Nursery, Tree Nuts .............. (202) 720-4215 Jorge Garcia-Pratts - Citrus, Coffee, Grapes, Tropical Fruits........... (202) 720-5412 Tierra Mobley - Berries, Cranberries, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes ......... (202) 720-4285 Dan Norris - Austrian Winter Peas, Dry Edible Peas, Lentils, Mints, Mushrooms, Peaches, Pears, Wrinkled Seed Peas, Dry Beans .......... (202) 720-3250 Kim Ritchie - Hops...................................................... 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