CDFA RELEASES CROP PRODUCTION FORECAST FOR AUGUST

SACRAMENTO, August 14, 2002- The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) California Agricultural Statistics Service has released the crop production forecast for August. The latest survey, conducted during the last week of July, included the following commodities:

Apples - California's 2002 apple acreage is estimated at 26,000 acres, a 10% decrease from 2001. The yield is forecast to be 11.5 tons per acre resulting in a total production of 300,000 tons, 14% below the 2001 production. The 2002 apple crop is reported to be in excellent condition. Compared to last year’s frost and heat-damaged crop, the apples appear to have good size and color, and an overall better quality.

Cotton - Upland cotton production in California is forecast at 1.30 million bales, down 27% from last year. Harvested acreage is estimated to be 457,000 acres, with a yield of 1,365 pounds per acre. California’s American Pima cotton production forecast is 620,000 bales, down 3% from last year. Harvested acreage is estimated at 229,000 acres, with a yield of 1,300 pounds per acre.

Grapes – Wine grape production for California is forecast at 3.20 million tons, up 5% from 2001. Table grape production is expected to total 770,000 tons, up 8% from last year. The California raisin grape forecast is 2.55 million tons, up 16% from 2001.

Olives - California’s 2002 olive crop forecast is 90,000 tons, down 33 percent compared to last year’s 134,000 tons. The bearing acreage, similar to last year’s, is estimated to be 36,000 acres. The yield, at 2.50 tons per acre, is also 33 percent less than the previous year. Olives are an alternative bearing crop with this year representing the low year of production. Other factors have also contributed to the expected low production this year. Early in the season, many groves were hit with cold weather just as buds were forming on the trees, followed by a spring hail storm in some areas of the State.

Pears - The forecast of the 2002 Bartlett pear crop in California is 260,000 tons, down 5% from 2001. Pears in the Linden district suffered some hail damage, but most areas were unaffected. There may be a lighter crop than was expected in the Sacramento River district, but production appears to be heavy in other growing regions. The 2002 other pear forecast for California is 30,000 tons, unchanged from 2001. Harvesting of Bosc and Hosui pears is underway, while the development of the Asian pear crop is reportedly good to this point.
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Others - The rice production forecast is 41.1 million cwt., up 7% from 2001; alfalfa hay is 8.24 million tons, up 13%; other hay is 1.50 million tons, down 9%; corn is 686 thousand tons, down 10%; sugar beets are 1.80 million tons, up 11%; dry beans are 1.78 million cwt., up 11%.

California’s Agricultural Statistics Service operates under a cooperative agreement between CDFA and the United States Department of Agriculture. Production forecasts are released on a monthly basis and do not reflect final production estimates. Late summer and fall harvests may change these estimates considerably. The next production forecast will be issued September 12, 2002.




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FLEX YOUR POWER. To meet California’s energy challenge, CDFA urges businesses and consumers to conserve. For a list of simple ways that you can reduce demand and cut your energy costs, see our Web site @www.cdfa.ca.gov.