U.S. farms having best year in decades, thanks to ‘super foods’

BY KYLE STOCK,

Europe is on the brink of financial disaster and 14 million Americans are still looking for work, but there’s some good news coming from America’s heartland: U.S. farmers are on track to have their second-fattest year in almost four decades.

Fueled by big surges in so-called “super foods,” those who grow fruits and vegetables and raise livestock are expected to collectively make $100.9 billion in profit this year, a 28 percent increase over last year. That’s thanks to ample yields, surging prices and rising demand from diners abroad, according to a report released yesterday by the Agriculture Department.

Annually over the past decade, farmers have harvested $75.6 billion in income on average.

The Allen family, for example, just finished harvesting one of its largest cranberry crops in almost a century. The 27-acre Freetown, Mass., bog coughed up almost 650,000 pounds of berries.

“Mother Nature was kind,” said Dawn Gates-Allen, a 45-year-old farmer who grew up on the property. “It was definitely a great year, especially when you think about all the hardships in the economy right now.”

The staples of Midwestern plains are harvesting most of the profit. This year’s corn crop will likely be the fourth largest on record and corn prices are near record highs. The combination is expected to drive a 34 percent revenue spike for corn farmers, a result that wheat farmers will almost match.

Meanwhile, dairy revenue is expected to grow by about 25 percent and beef sales will likely rise by 21 percent. Demand, in part, is being driven by growth in food exports, much of it to Asian countries.

“Sometimes you get higher prices or higher volume, but this time both are very high for a lot of products,” said Agriculture Department economist Timothy Park.

The cash windfall is coming mostly from the free market. Government subsidy payments are down almost 15 percent this year and will comprise only about 2.5 percent of farm income this year.

Some of the fastest growing crops are the healthiest — foods like cranberries, almonds and avocados, which are all on track for double-digit percent gains in sales. Super food farmers are finding success in a two-part recipe: media reports about health benefits and ambitious marketing campaigns.

California, for example, now spends about $9 million a year to advertise its 5,000 avocado farms and, in turn, more grocery stores are stocking the fruits year-round.

“People are just smearing them on a bagel or toast now,” said Jan DeLyser, vice president of marketing at the California Avocado Commission, a state trade group.

Meanwhile, the state’s almond growers are looking forward to their 10th record year, as sales have been spurred by the growing popularity of almond milk and almond butter. Blue Diamond Growers, a cooperative of California almond farmers, posted a record $825 million in sales this year as the amount of almonds used as an ingredient in other foods surged 34 percent.

“I don’t think there’s another agriculture story in the country that’s as great as the almond’s,” Blue Diamond spokeswoman Susan Brauner said. “And this year, it all worked magically.”

But expenses are also on the rise. U.S. farmers are expected to see increases of more than 20 percent this year for feed, fertilizer and fuel — three of their biggest costs. Labor and electricity are the only necessities that were a bit cheaper.

As for cranberries, this year’s crop was bittersweet. Both yields and prices were high, but many farmers have spent large sums on miniature weather stations and automated irrigating systems. The Allens’ system will help them cut fuel expenses by about 10 percent, but it cost them $27,000.

“Like any other farmer, you have your good years and you have your not-so-good years,” Gates-Allen said. “We’ve been in the business long enough to know that you just have to have a day job.” For Gates-Allen, that’s a desk job managing communications for the local cranberry trade group.

(Source: www.thedaily.com )