Strawberries overtake wine grapes as San Luis Obispo County’s most valuable crop in 2024
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – The County of San Luis Obispo released its annual production statistics for the local $1 billion agriculture industry and strawberries were last year's top crop after falling sales for wine grapes.
"Despite declines in certain sectors, San Luis Obispo’s agriculture remains a strong economic driver for the County," shared Martin Settevendemie, San Luis Obispo County's Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer. "The diversity of the County’s agriculture, with over one hundred different crop types produced, is a key factor in its sustainability. Coupled with the resilience of our local farmers and ranchers, agriculture is poised to remain a mainstay in our economy and culture."
Notably, these annual figures only represent commodity gross values and not the net profits of producers.
For the fourth consecutive year, the total agriculture sector's value in San Luis Obispo County was over $1 billion with strawberries reclaiming their position as the top crop with a total value of $242,370,000 in 2024.
Last report's top crop of wine grapes fell to $194,981,000 from last cycle's total value of $323,952,000 after a notable decline in sales explained the County of San Luis Obispo.
Together, wine grapes and strawberries accounted for more than 43 percent of the county's total agricultural sector value this cycle.
The County of San Luis Obispo noted that the vegetable sector saw an increase of over $35.7 million, a 15 percent increase compared to the last report and the second highest gross value in the previous decade.
Key crops contributing to that increase and from expanded acreage and higher prices include broccoli, cabbage, cilantro, and lettuce detailed San Luis Obispo County.
Avocados and lemons also showed strong growth, increasing in value by 64 percent and 95 percent respectively.
The list below shows the top ten crop values in the 2024 crop report for San Luis Obispo County.
2024 Top Ten Value Crops
Strawberries $242,370,000
Wine Grapes (All types) $194,981,000
Cattle and Calves $65,531,000
Avocados $56,247,000
Broccoli $53,758,000
Lettuce (Head) $35,412,000
Vegetable & Ornamental Transplants $32,307,000
Lettuce (Leaf) $23,153,000
Lemons $22,906,000
Cauliflower $21,392,000
According to the County of San Luis Obispo, the full digital crop report for 2024 will be made available in October and historical annual reports beginning in 1928 can be found here.
The County of Santa Barbara also releases annual agriculture value reports that can be found here.
