California farms are looking greener than ever

[ellisonz]

Source: LA Times



California farmers are finishing up harvesting 454,500 acres of cotton, almost 50% more acreage than last year. (Brian van der Brug, Los Angeles Times / October 19, 2011)

California farms are looking greener than ever
With prices for many crops near all-time highs, farm income is expected to post strong gains this year. That makes the agriculture sector a rare bright spot in the state's economy.

By Diana Marcum, Los Angeles Times

November 23, 2011, 7:02 p.m.
Reporting from Fresno—
As Californians savor their Thanksgiving feasts, the states' farmers are especially thankful. California's agriculture sector is on track for a record year, a rare bright spot in the state's economy.

Prices for cotton, grapes and other crops are near all-time highs. Foreign buyers are gobbling California almonds, grapes, citrus and dairy products. Agricultural exports through September are up 16% over the same period last year. Net farm income is projected to post strong gains in 2011 after nearly doubling over the previous decade.

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That's good news for California, the nation's leading agricultural state and the fifth-largest producer worldwide. In contrast with the grain-and-livestock focused Midwest, California farmers cultivate more than 400 commodities, including more than half of the nation's fruits and vegetables.

Looking for artichokes? Dates? Kiwi? Pomegranates? California accounts for more than 99% of the U.S. production of each of those crops, according to the California Food and Agriculture Department.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-california-ag-boom-20111124,0,7022738.story