MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County’s agriculture industry saw a major rebound in 2024, with overall crop and livestock production reaching nearly $5 billion in gross value — a 14.7% increase from the previous year.
And, for the first time in county history, a single crop — strawberries — surpassed the $1 billion mark in gross value, coming in at $1,039,220,000, which marks a 15% increase from 2023.
The latest data stems from the 2024 Crop and Livestock Report released July 1 by County Agricultural Commissioner Juan Hidalgo.
“This report reflects a production gross value of $4,992,581,000, which is an increase of 14.7% from 2023,” Hidalgo said. “The values represented here reflect gross values of agricultural commodities grown in Monterey County, and do not include costs incurred by growers … or the regulatory costs to growers, which have risen significantly in the past few years.”
These regulatory costs include food safety implementation and compliance, air quality mandates for farm equipment greenhouse reductions, and water quality and sustainability mandates, he noted.
Top Crops and Categories
Strawberries remained the county’s most valuable commodity in 2024, followed by:
- Leaf Lettuce, including Romaine and other varieties, at $933.9 million (up 19%);
- Head Lettuce at $596.6 million (up 21%); and
- Broccoli at $578.9 million (up 23%).
Vegetable crops overall increased by nearly 20% to $3.45 billion, while fruit and nut crops saw a smaller increase of 6.3% to $1.27 billion.
However, not all crops saw gains. Wine grapes, a perennial top-five commodity, dropped to eighth in value. Gross value for wine grapes declined 21.8%, with Hidalgo attributing the decrease to “oversupply and reduced demand, along with a 20% reduction in yields due to unseasonably warm weather in late summer and October.”
Field crops experienced an increase in value, while seed crops and livestock and poultry values declined.
Recovery and Innovation
Hidalgo noted that “more normal weather patterns” led to an elongated and more typical growing season compared to 2023, when storms disrupted production. He also credited increased planted acreage and strong market demand for high-value crops.
In line with the report’s theme — “Smart Agriculture: Growing the Seeds of Change” — the commissioner highlighted the local industry’s growing use of advanced technologies and AI to address long-term challenges.
“As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to be introduced to the world, the agricultural industry is already utilizing this new technology to tackle issues, such as skilled labor shortages, environmental sustainability and worker safety,” Hidalgo said.
He added that AI-integrated equipment is now used for input spraying, weed control, thinning, cultivating, scouting and plant identification, enhancing both productivity and efficiency on the farm.
Hidalgo concluded his remarks by thanking local growers and the Agricultural Commissioner’s Office staff for their contributions.
“I would like to express my appreciation to the agricultural industry in providing us with vital information to make this report possible,” he said.
The 2024 Crop and Livestock Report is available in both English and Spanish at tinyurl.com/MC2024CropReport.
