Pacific International’s top commodity export crop is broccoli, and unfortunately, “this year, we didn’t have a great yielding crop,” Dill says, “so the percentage of what we exported was very small compared to the last two years.”
The loss of volume was in part due to root maggots, which Dill says affected a fair amount of cool-weather crops. “No one was immune to it,” he said, explaining that although many growers plant broccoli as a rotation crop and don’t expect to make money on it, it can neverthless be profitable, especially if there are any winter shortages.
Usually it doesn’t sell well because it is competing against fruit, but because of winter shortages, broccoli sold very well. “A lot were surprised about it, scratching their heads,” Dill explained. “You plant broccoli knowing it will lose money and it actually made us money.”
Final Thoughts
In a year that showed the many uncertainties for agriculture—weather, water, pests, labor shortages, rising costs, and policy changes—in many aspects, Salinas still came out ahead. Those in the industry know that careful planning is a must, though few can adequately plan for all the contingencies that may occur. Yet, for most California growers, shippers, and wholesalers, it’s just another day in paradise.
Image: Thinkstock
