Income dipped for Stanislaus farmers in 2020. How did drought and pandemic affect it?
Gross farm income dipped to an estimated $3.48 billion in Stanislaus County last year, mainly due to drought, COVID-19 and weak almond prices.
Agricultural Commissioner Kamaljit Bagri unveiled the report at Tuesday’s meeting of the county Board of Supervisors. The income was down 3% from $3.6 billion in 2019.
Almonds remained the top-grossing farm product at $1.12 billion, but the average price per pound dropped because of a record crop statewide.
Milk was second at $737 million, an increase from 2019 thanks to higher prices for dairy farmers. Rounding out the top five were chickens, cattle and nurseries that grow fruit and nut trees.
The report tallies the income to farmers for products as diverse as apricots, alfalfa, beeswax and quail eggs.
It does not reflect production costs, which can make farming unprofitable at times. Nor does it account for the income to the tens of thousands of people at dairy plants, canneries, wineries, poultry plants and other ventures.
“We look at our major manufacturing employers, and I believe eight of the top 10 are still ag-based,” said Supervisor Vito Chiesa, an almond grower.
The 2020 gross income was well short of the record $4.4 billion in 2014, when both nut and milk prices were unusually high.
It was the first annual report by Bagri, appointed in March to succeed Milton O’Haire.
“This year’s report reflects a historic pandemic year that changed markets suddenly and dramatically and created numerous challenges along the entire production chain,” she said. “As lockdown orders went into effect, consumers changed eating habits as schools and restaurants closed.”
Low rainfall reduced beef cattle production in the hills flanking the San Joaquin Valley. A huge wildfire west of Patterson also took a toll.
The drought now is in its second and even worse year, but all is not bleak. Almond prices are bouncing back because some growers stripped the 2021 nuts from their trees to reduce irrigation needs.
Supervisor Terry Withrow, an accountant who also grows almonds and wine grapes, noted the expense side of the ledger.
“Farming costs continue to go through the roof, continue to rise, with all the different regulations we’re up against here in California,” he said.
The top 10 for 2020:
1. Almonds: $1.12 billion in gross income, little changed from 2019. Volume rose sharply, but prices per pound declined.
2. Milk: $737 milllion, up from $629 million, thanks to higher prices.
3. Chickens: $342 million, down from $366 million. Most go to the Foster Farms plant in Livingston.
4. Cattle: $202 million, up from $198 million. This includes animals sold to slaughterhouses and to dairy farms and cattle ranches for future production.
5. Fruit and nut nursery: $163 million, down from $175 million. These companies sell young trees and vines to commercial farmers. Ornamental plants are a much smaller category.
6. Walnuts: $103 million, down from $123 million, mainly due to lower prices.
7. Silage: $99 million, down from $137 million. Acreage was down for this dairy feed, made by fermenting corn and other crops under large tarps.
8. Almond pollination: $89 million, up from $84 million. This income goes to beekeepers and is far more than what they get for their honey and wax.
9: Turkeys: $54 million, down from $61 million. Most are processed in Turlock by Foster Farms.
10: Tomatoes: $38 million, down from $42 million. Most go to the area’s canneries rather than produce aisles.
Annual crop reports dating to 1940 are on the agricultural commissioner’s website, www.stanag.org.
