As New Jersey vegetable shipments get underway, here is a look at last season’s volume to add some perspective as to what to expect this summer.
Bell peppers and tomatoes saw significant shipping increases in 2017, while sweet corn acreage was stable.
New Jersey’s top vegetables in 2017 were tomatoes, bell peppers and sweet corn, and total acreage for vegetable crops topped 35,000 acres.
The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service reports shipments for 18 vegetables tracked in New Jersey totaled 507.8 million pounds, with area harvested estimated at 35,100 acres.
2017 harvested vegetable acreage of 35,100 was up 1.4 percent from 2016, when 34,600 acres of vegetables were harvested.
According to the USDA, tomatoes, bell peppers and sweet corn together accounted for 51 percent of total vegetable production in the state.
The total value of utilized production in the state was $193.8 million, and tomatoes, bell peppers and sweet corn together accounted for 48 percent of the total.
Sweet Corn Shipments
- Sweet corn topped all vegetable crops in terms of acreage, with 6,200 acres harvested in 2017, down slightly from 6,400 acres harvested in 2016.
- Sweet corn production of 601,400 cwt. in 2017 compares to 595,000 cwt. in 2016, according to USDA statistics.
- Value of sweet corn production in 2017 totaled $18.04 million, up from $17.29 million in 2016.
Tomato Shipments
- Tomato harvested acreage in 2017 totaled 4,000 acres, up 38 percent from 2,900 acres harvested in 2016.
- Production of tomatoes in 2017 totaled 1.12 million cwt., up 42 percent from 791,000 cwt. in 2016.
- Value of tomatoes in New Jersey was $39.2 million in 2017, down from $46.3 million in 2016.
Bell Pepper Shipments
- Bell pepper harvested acreage in 2017 totaled 3,100 acres, up 34 percent from 2,300 acres in 2016.
- Production of bell peppers in 2017 was 868,000 cwt., up from 633,000 cwt. in 2016.
- Value of bell pepper production in 2017 was $35.9 million, up a whopping 80 pecent from $19.9 million in 2016.