Why Vegetables are Important to Washington’s Economy
Vegetable production has a big impact on the state’s economy. Did you know that Washington farmers lead the nation in production of carrots for processing, producing 35% of the nation’s total? They also lead the nation in growing sweet corn for processing (producing 25% of the nation’s total), and are second in producing fall potatoes (22% of the total), asparagus (32% of the total), and green peas for processing (21% of the total). Washington ranks third in onion production, producing 12.4% of the nation’s total.
Washington has about 40,000 farms that fall within the United States Department of Agriculture’s definition of a farm as any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products are sold. In 1999, 25,700 of these farms had sales between $1,000 and $9,999, making this the largest economic sales class of Washington farms. According to 1997 agricultural census data, 51% of Washington farms had sales of less than $10,000, and 13% produced over 83% of the market value of agricultural products. Approximately 32,000 farms are considered small farms, based on the USDA’s definition of less than $250,000 in gross annual receipts.
Agriculture is a major source of employment for Washington State workers. Between 1990 and 1998, agricultural employment increased by 10,100 or 12.6%. In 1999, 87,400 people were employed directly in farming activities. In addition, agriculture accounted for thousands of jobs in food processing, transportation, and wholesale trade, at feed, seed and chemical distributors, and farm equipment dealers. Food product and related businesses employed 41,000 workers in 1999, and fruit and vegetable wholesale houses employed an average of 8,500 workers.
Agricultural employment is especially important in eastern Washington, where approximately 12% of all jobs are in agricultural production. A major share of other jobs in the region, such as those in food processing, are directly dependent on farm income or the income generated by it. Eighty percent of all agricultural-related jobs in the state are located in eastern Washington. In western Washington, agriculture accounts for less than 1% of employment. But agriculture is an important source of jobs outside of major urban areas.
USDA economists determined that in 1998, about 20 cents of the consumer’s food
dollar went to the farmer. The remaining 80 cents pays for all the other things
that need to happen between the time the crop leaves the farmer’s field and
the product reaches the consumer’s table. The total value of Washington’s agricultural
production in 1998 was $5.257 billion. This is the amount the farmer received
for the raw product. The remaining 80% of the consumer’s food dollar, or $21
billion, represents transportation, storage, processing and other activities
in the economy. The combined total of $26.3 billion accounted for about 14%
of Washington’s gross state product. A detailed account of the gross state product
is available from the U.S. Department of Commerce at
http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/gsp/action.cfm.
The total impact of the collective vegetable industry on the state’s economy has never been reported. However for the potato industry, a 2000 report states that, "The total economic impact of the potato industry is estimated to be $3,014.4 million on the Washington economy. In other words, the potato industry directly and indirectly generates $3 billion of sales throughout the Washington economy." In arriving at this figure, the authors of the report site the transportation, warehousing and marketing activities that accompany the finished product after it leaves the farm. Industries such as agricultural services, construction, pulp and paper, petroleum, utilities, real estate, and business and personnel services all are impacted by potato production.
