- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Crop report shows increased values for 2022; cannabis included for first time
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Lake County’s latest crop report shows the continued dominance of winegrapes, with cannabis numbers included in the report for the first time.
Agricultural Commissioner Katherine VanDerWall presented the new report to the Board of Supervisors at its meeting Tuesday morning.
For Lake County, which has agriculture among its key industries, the report gives an in-depth view of top crops, valuations and changes in acreage.
The estimated gross production value for agriculture in Lake County in 2022 totaled $107,098,745, a 28% increase from 2021. VanDerWall said nursery and timber production was down and there were no participants in industrial hemp; in 2021, there had been three hemp growers and eight acres harvested.
New this year was the first-ever inclusion of cannabis-related statistics, which while basic are meant to be a starting point for further information and study in the coming year, VanDerWall told the board.
That cannabis insert did not give values for the county’s crop. It represented the square footage for both mixed light and outdoor cultivation, information that VanDerWall thanked the tax collector and Community Development Departments for helping the ag department gather.
VanDerWall also looked back through old crop reports over 50 years to offer a comparison of how Lake County’s agriculture and its main commodities have changed over the years.
Looking at the main commodities over the past five decades, VanDerWall said that in 1972, there were 7,025 acres of pears, 270 acres of winegrapes, 9,643 acres of walnuts, 181,022 acres of field and seed crop — which includes pasture, hay, grain crops — and 9,505 head of cows and calves.
In 2022, pears were down to 1,376 acres, winegrapes had grown to 10,987 acres, walnuts totaled 3,485 acres, field and seed crops were at 91,150 acres, and there were 1,624 heads of cattle and calves.
VanDerWall’s report showed that, last year, the top five commodities by value were as follows:
1. Winegrapes: $84,756,086; increase of 43% from 2021. The total tonnage was 45,637 and the total grape acreage was 10,987 acres.
2. Pears: $16,286,443; decrease of 8%. The total tonnage was 16,371 and total pear acreage was 1,375.5 acres.
3. Field and seed crops: $2,294,500; 28% increase.
4. Cattle and calves: $1,509,610; 5.8% increase.
5. Miscellaneous livestock (goats, sheep, hogs, meat birds, etc.): $763,354; 6.4% decrease.
VanDerWall reported that there were increases in livestock and poultry products, 41%; livestock production, 11%; and vegetables, 20%.
There were decreases in walnuts, 65%; nursery production, 45%; and timber production, 91%.
For the next crop report, VanDerWall said her office is looking forward to working with the cannabis industry to expand on the data that we’re going to include and provide. She hopes to mirror traditional agriculture with reporting on production values and different categories, rather than just square footage.
The 2022 cannabis production in Lake County totaled 330,758 square feet, or 7.6 acres, for mixed light cultivation and 7,757,765 square feet, or 178 acres, for outdoor cultivation.
Supervisor Michael Green said that, although it’s bare bones, he was excited to see the cannabis information in the crop report, noting it’s a first step.
Green said he doesn’t know how other industries report, but he hoped the cannabis industry would help with getting that information.
Noting the size of the acreage, he said he would like to see the numbers higher, adding that Lake County’s discretionary use permit process has made this a slow growth industry.
He said he would love to see future reporting formatted so that there can be comparisons to other crops and to signal that cannabis is not out of control, as some have suggested it is.
“It is just a fraction of acreages that are devoted to traditional crops in this county and probably will remain that way for some time,” he said.
VanDerWall noted that her office is doing surveys and reaching out to growers, and so they’re reporting the information they can get.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said it’s difficult to track cannabis because there are so many ways it’s sold. He said he’s looking forward to seeing what additional information VanDerWall can get in the future.
VanDerWall’s report also showed that pest detection activities resulted in no trapping of key pests, ranging from Mediterranean fruit fly to European grapevine moth and vine mealybug, among numerous others.
During public comment at Tuesday’s meeting, Eric McCarrick, vice president of the Lake County Cannabis Alliance, thanked the county for the numbers, adding she was glad to see cannabis being integrated into the annual report.
Regarding the crop acres for cannabis, she said it’s only about 1% of winegrapes.
Sabatier moved to approve the crop report as presented, with Vice Chair Moke Simon seconding and the board approving it 5-0.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
2022 Crop Report by LakeCoNews on Scribd