Salinas Valley vegetables see mixed trends in 2020

Salinas Valley vegetable commodities that enjoyed more than a double-digit increase in shipments in 2020 included broccoli, cauliflower, celery hearts, and iceberg lettuce.

U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics revealed that vegetable categories that showed more than a double-digit decline in shipments in green leaf, Boston lettuce, processed lettuce, and red leaf lettuce.

Here are 2020 Salinas Valley shipments of select vegetables, compared with 2019:

Salinas Valley vegetable truck shipments (100,000-pound units):

• Conventional artichokes: 497.1 million pounds, down 0.5% compared with 499.6 million pounds in 2019;
• Organic artichokes: 26 million pounds, up 34% from 19.4 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional crown-cut broccoli: 1.6 billion pounds, down 3.7% from 1.66 billion pounds in 2019;
• Organic crown-cut broccoli: 38.6 million pounds, up 8.7% from 355 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional broccoli: 939.8 million pounds, up 22.5% from 766.9 million pounds in 2019;
• Organic broccoli: 268.6 million pounds, up 11% from 242 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional cauliflower: 2.23 billion pounds, up 17% from 1.9 billion pounds in 2019;
• Organic cauliflower: 246.8 million pounds, up 25% from 196.3 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional celery hearts: 323.7 million pounds, up 20% from 269.5 million pounds in 2019;
• Organic celery hearts: 163.3 million pounds, up 3% from 157.8 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional celery: 4.08 billion pounds, up 42% from 2.87 billion in 2019;
• Organic celery: 437.5 million pounds, up 30% from 336.4 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional Boston lettuce: 70 million pounds, down 25% from 94 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional green leaf: 758.3 million pounds, down 15% from 891.4 million pounds in 2019;
• Organic green leaf: 29.5 million pounds, up 143% from 12.1 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional iceberg lettuce: 11.04 billion pounds, up 2.8% from 10.7 billion pounds;
• Organic iceberg; 185.3 million pounds, up 46% from 126.5 million pounds in 2019;
• Processed lettuce: 293.5 million pounds, down 56% from 676.4 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional red leaf lettuce: 205.6 million pounds, down 12% from 234.4 million pounds in 2019;
• Organic red leaf lettuce: 28.9 million pounds, up 175% from 10.5 million pounds in 2019;
• Conventional romaine hearts: 6.5 billion pounds, up 3.6% with 6.27 billion pounds;
• Organic romaine hearts at 728 million pounds, up 5.6% from 689.4 million pounds;
• Conventional romaine lettuce: 2.47 billion pounds, down 20% from 3.08 billion; and
• Organic romaine: 75 million pounds, up 97% from 38 million pounds in 2019.