Santa Clara County released its 2003 crop report this week and
it’s clear while San Benito County continues to grow
agriculturally, its northern neighbor is declining.
Santa Clara County released its 2003 crop report this week and it’s clear while San Benito County continues to grow agriculturally, its northern neighbor is declining.
Farm production in Santa Clara dropped 6 percent over all in 2003, and the value of its produce has slid 20 percent in the past three years. Meanwhile, San Benito saw an 11 percent increase in one year, with leaf lettuce jumping $10 million alone.
The decline in agriculture production isn’t new for Santa Clara, Agriculture Commissioner Greg Van Wassenhove said.
“This county has been gradually developing itself, urbanizing at the expense of agriculture land,” he said. “Development is taking agriculture land out of production.”
San Benito County Agriculture Commissioner Paul Matulich agrees.
“You’ve got land up there that goes from $100,000 to $1 million, so why would you break your neck farming when you could sell and make your life easy?” he said.
One of the reasons San Benito has continued to preserve its agriculture land and raise production is because of the building moratorium placed on the city in 2002 after a 15-million gallon sewage spill. The city is not allowed to issue any new building permits until 2005 if a new sewage plant meets its scheduled deadline. Matulich said for now, urbanization in San Benito is limited, but there’s no saying what could happen years down the road.
“Eventually, money talks,” he said.
Another big competition for Santa Clara growers are the big-box stores like Home Depot and Lowes that have moved in during the past few years. Tamiko Takeda grows nursery stock at Mount Green Nursery in San Martin. She said many of the small nurseries she once to sold to are closing down. Santa Clara’s nursery stock production slipped 9 percent between 2002 and 2003, but San Benito’s increased $800,000.
The fact that San Benito has not invited big business in is a good thing for local growers, according to El Modeno Gardens Manager Melissa Wilson.
“If they come in, then the independent companies will go away,” she said.
Still, Santa Clara County farmers produced more than $241 million worth of crops last year, about $14.5 million less than the year before. Nursery crops remained the county’s number-one ag category for the third straight year, but this leader is faltering. Nursery crop production slipped 9 percent since 2002, according to the crop report. Mushrooms, the second strongest county crop, held the line in 2003 and made slight gains. Mushrooms were the county’s top crop in 1999, after which nursery crops took over. Bell peppers stayed at number three, but lost 25 percent of the previous season.
Garlic, Gilroy’s signature crop, did not crack the list of 25 crops that made $1 million or more last year in the county. It has been since 1999 that garlic was a “million-dollar crop,” according to Oleson.
By comparison San Benito County produced $239 million worth of agricultural crops in 2003.
Peter Crowley contributed to this report
