Marin County crop value dip in 2021 linked to drought impact

Marin County’s value of agricultural crops dropped by 5% in 2021, blamed by officials in part of a drought leading to cutbacks in crops and livestock.

Officially, the county’s agricultural commissioner reported, the agricultural output of the county in 2021 was $96.7 million, compared with $101.8 million in 2020. For 2020 and 2019, Marin had seen gains in values of crops and livestock. The county stated in fact, $101 million mark in 2020 was one of only three times it has exceeded that mark.

“We are now seeing the data that shows the long-term impacts this drought is having on our agricultural industry, such as significant reductions in livestock, exorbitant feed costs, and fallowing of land,“ Assistant Agricultural Commissioner Scott Wise told the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. “In 2021, Marin’s share of this megadrought reached critical levels. Due to the lack of precipitation, ponds and wells ran dry and many farmers and ranchers resorted to hauling water to their ag operations. Still, there is only so much water an operation can afford to haul, so many growers had to fallow fields and many ranchers were forced to sell off animals.”

Water, as a key component in aquaculture, did deliver one of the report’s bright spots. The total gross value of oysters, mussels, and clams, a component of the West Marin County economy, jumped to $8.2 million from $3.75 million, an increase of 119%. The increase was attributed to revitalized demand by consumers after a year of coronavirus lockdowns and restaurant closures in 2020, the county stated.

Much of the rest of the report reflected figures going the other way— and mostly by double-digit proportions. For example, the value of hay was down 49%, silage down 43% and harvested pasture down 33%. (Much of hay and silage is not sold but stays on local farms as feed.)

The total value of field crops fell to just over $9 million from $14 million. Also, fruits and vegetables were down 34%, and nursery products went down 25%.

Livestock, which accounts for good share of the value of the county’s output, was down 13%, slipping to just under $14 million from just over $16 million. Conventional milk production value was up 7% but the organic milk sector — traditionally, a strong point for Marin farmers — was down 8%.

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