FAIRFIELD — Solano County agriculture rebounded in 2017 after two straight years of decline to the gross value of crop and livestock production with the second biggest year in county history.
The county experienced a $15.65 million jump to $362.82 million, a 4.5 percent increase over 2016 when the gross value was reported at $347.2 million. That was a 2 percent decline from 2015 when the value was reported at $353.87 million in 2015, the county Agriculture Commissioner’s Office reported.
“The abatement of drought conditions contributed to increased values in animal production and field crops,” a letter to Karen Ross, secretary of the state Department of Food and Agriculture and the county Board of Supervisors, states.
The letter is part of the annual Crop and Livestock Report.
The biggest year in county history was recorded in 2014 at $378.6 million, the county repored.
The top three crops remained walnuts, increasing in value by 5.7 percent to $47.36 million; nursery products, up 12.3 percent to $44.63 million; and almonds, the value of which jumped 7.5 percent to $38.62 million, the report states.
Tomatoes ($27.02 million) and alfalfa hay ($25.61 million) rounded out the top five.
Trailing those were cattle and calves, jumping from ninth to sixth with a gross value of $$25.11 million – a 173 percent increase, the report states. The seventh highest grossing group was wine grapes ($20.37 million), sunflower seeds ($17.23 million), wheat ($7.26 million) and sheep and lambs ($6.03 million).
The county escaped a potential disaster for the second straight year with detection of Mediterranean fruit flies. Unlike the 2016-17 event which required no quarantine, an 81-square-mile zone was established in September 2017 and continued through July 30.
However, crop damage was limited, unlike in 2008 when growers lost more than $1 million and it cost $600,000 for public ag agencies to eradicate the infestation. The eradication costs of the latest event were not available in time for this report.
The county exported 932 federally certificated commodities to 37 nations, and 385 certificates for export to other U.S. states. The largest overseas market was Japan at 32 percent, followed by South Korea at 27 percent and China at 6 percent.
The county ranked 28th among the state’s 58 counties for gross crop and livestock value in 2016. The 2017 ranking was not available.
