Vegetables Michigan vegetable growers produced 789,500 tons of fresh and processed vegetables in 1997. This was a 5 percent decrease from last year's production. Harvested acreage, at 111,750, for fresh market and processed vegetables, was down 2 percent from 1996. Value of production for all vegetables was $172 million, which was slightly lower than that of the previous year. Nationally, Michigan ranked tenth and seventh in fresh market and processing vegetable production, respectively.

Most of the state's vegetables are grown in the Lower Peninsula's southern half. Michigan ships fresh market produce to major markets throughout the nation. Fresh market vegetable production was 8.2 million hundredweight, a slight increase from 1996. Planting of vegetables was slowed due to the record cold May temperatures. Early plantings were slow to emerge due to cool soil temperatures. Crops such as asparagus, snap beans, and tomatoes suffered frost damage in low-lying areas at the beginning of the season. Despite unfavorable growing conditions in May and early June, vegetable harvest was a success. Crop conditions greatly improved by the end of August. Excellent quality and yields were reported for carrot, celery, onion, snap bean, and sweet corn crops. Nationally, Michigan ranked second and third in celery and fresh carrot production, respectively. The top five fresh market vegetable counties (including potatoes) were Bay, Berrien, Newaygo, Allegan, and Macomb.

Both use processed vegetables in and out-of-state processors. Production amounted to 379,500 tons, a decrease of about 10 percent from 1996. Michigan ranked as the number one producer of cucumbers for pickles nationwide. The top processing vegetable counties (including potatoes) were St. Joseph, Montcalm, Oceana, Gratiot, Mason, and Saginaw.

Dual purpose vegetable acreage is used for both fresh market and processing uses. Nationally, Michigan ranked third for dual purpose asparagus production. Favorable conditions during harvest enabled the crops to progress normally, and yields improved greatly at the end of the season.

Michigan Vegetable Cash Receipts Chart, 1986-97

Table 8.1 Vegetables, all: Area, production, and value
Year	Area planted	Area harvested	Production	Value
	Acres		Tons	1,000 dollars
1993	128,700	122,600	880,800	184,207
1994	127,000	121,200	878,280	174,423
1995	126,000	117,700	824,550	185,982
1996	122,600	113,900	827,040	173,159
1997	116,200	111,750	789,500	172,048

Table 8.2 Vegetables, processing: Area, production, and value

[Green peas are not published to avoid disclosure of individual operations]

Item Year Area Production Price received Value of production

Planted Harvested Per acre Total

Acres Acres Tons Tons Dollars per ton 1,000 dollars

Beans, snap
1993 23,000 22,000 3.20 70,400 180.00 12,672

1994 23,000 22,000 3.50 77,000 147.00 11,319

1995 23,000 21,500 2.86 61,490 162.00 9,961

1996 22,000 21,000 3.30 69,300 164.00 11,365

1997 23,200 22,800 3.45 78,660 171.00 13,451

Carrots
1993 2,000 1,900 19.50 37,050 50.50 1,871

1994 1,900 1,800 23.00 41,400 57.10 2,364

1995 1,700 1,600 21.00 33,600 59.70 2,006

1996 1,700 1,600 23.00 36,800 65.10 2,396

1997 1,600 1,500 25.00 37,500 62.40 2,340

Corn, sweet
1993 7,000 7,000 6.30 44,100 76.00 3,352

1994 7,100 7,100 6.50 46,150 65.00 3,000

1995 5,000 4,100 6.00 24,600 70.00 1,722

1996 3,900 3,700 6.75 24,980 82.00 2,048

1997 (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1)

Cucumbers for pickles
1993 23,000 22,000 5.80 127,600 155.00 19,778

1994 24,500 24,000 5.50 132,000 164.00 21,648

1995 28,000 26,000 5.50 143,000 149.00 21,307

1996 28,000 26,000 5.30 137,800 156.00 21,497

1997 26,000 25,000 5.20 130,000 152.00 19,760

Tomatoes
1993 6,600 6,500 28.00 182,000 69.50 12,649

1994 4,600 4,500 32.00 144,000 73.80 10,627

1995 4,600 4,500 30.00 135,000 65.70 8,870

1996 4,600 4,400 32.50 143,000 73.70 10,539

1997 3,800 3,800 32.50 123,500 73.30 9,053

¹ Sweet corn for processing is not longer grown commercially in Michigan.

Table 8.3 Vegetables, fresh market: Area, production, and value

Item Year Area Production Price received Value of production ¹

Planted Harvested Per acre Total

Acres Acres Cwt. 1,000 cwt. Dollars per cwt. 1,000 dollars

Beans, snap
1993 2,200 2,100 40 84 29.00 2,436

1994 2,000 1,900 50 95 23.80 2,261

1995 1,800 1,700 45 77 27.10 2,087

1996 1,700 1,500 40 60 38.20 2,292

1997 1,700 1,600 45 72 29.80 2,146

Cabbage
1993 2,200 1,900 260 494 9.60 4,742

1994 2,000 1,800 320 576 8.80 5,069

1995 1,800 1,700 220 374 12.00 4,488

1996 1,800 1,700 310 527 9.00 4,743

1997 1,900 1,900 260 494 7.80 3,853

Cantaloups
1993 1,200 1,100 110 121 17.00 2,057

1994 1,000 800 115 92 15.60 1,435

1995 900 850 150 128 16.30 2,086

1996 800 600 90 54 17.00 918

1997 800 750 150 113 19.80 2,237

Carrots
1993 5,400 5,300 240 1,272 12.30 15,646

1994 6,100 5,900 250 1,475 15.10 22,273

1995 6,200 5,700 340 1,938 16.80 32,558

1996 6,000 5,000 260 1,300 11.80 15,340

1997 5,500 5,300 250 1,325 12.50 16,563

Corn, sweet
1993 13,000 11,500 75 863 16.20 13,981

1994 13,500 12,000 85 1,020 15.00 15,300

1995 13,000 11,500 80 920 15.70 14,444

1996 12,500 10,500 85 893 17.00 15,181

1997 12,500 11,500 85 978 17.80 17,408

Cucumbers
1993 5,700 5,400 170 918 13.00 11,934

1994 5,800 5,400 170 918 11.20 10,282

1995 5,900 5,700 150 855 18.00 15,390

1996 5,700 5,500 200 1,100 15.20 16,720

1997 5,700 5,600 200 1,120 14.10 15,792

Onions
1993 7,400 7,100 310 2,201 14.40 26,928

1994 7,000 6,700 325 2,178 8.61 15,188

1995 6,500 6,400 290 1,856 9.25 13,736

1996 6,200 5,800 310 1,798 10.80 15,541

1997 6,200 6,100 320 1,952 11.20 21,862

Peppers, bell
1993 2,500 2,300 160 368 22.40 8,243

1994 2,100 1,900 200 380 20.80 7,904

1995 2,200 2,100 170 357 22.70 8,104

1996 2,100 2,000 200 400 18.40 7,360

1997 1,800 1,700 220 374 20.90 7,817

Tomatoes
1993 2,700 2,400 150 360 32.30 11,628

1994 2,700 2,500 160 400 31.40 12,560

1995 2,600 2,400 150 360 30.40 10,944

1996 2,600 2,400 180 432 24.20 10,454

1997 2,700 2,200 180 396 24.20 9,583

¹ Onions=Value of sales.

Table 8.4 Vegetables, dual purpose: Area, production, and value

Item Year Area Production Price received Value of production

Planted Harvested Per acre Total

Acres Acres Cwt. 1,000 cwt. Dollars per cwt. 1,000 dollars

Asparagus
1993 ¹19,500 19,000 15 285 60.20 17,155

1994 ¹18,500 18,000 13 234 60.70 14,194

1995 ¹17,500 17,000 18 306 65.70 20,106

1996 ¹18,000 17,500 17 298 67.50 20,110

1997 ¹ 18,000 17,500 15 263 67.70 17,792

Cauliflower
1993 900 800 130 104 40.60 4,220

1994 800 700 120 84 39.10 3,288

1995 700 650 120 78 33.60 2,617

1996 700 600 130 78 30.30 2,367

1997 700 600 140 84 25.90 2,174

Celery
1993 2,800 2,700 420 1,134 12.40 14,014

1994 2,800 2,600 430 1,118 13.20 14,745

1995 2,700 2,500 420 1,050 13.60 14,255

1996 2,500 2,300 520 1,196 11.10 13,294

1997 2,300 2,100 490 1,029 16.60 17,081

¹ Bearing acres only.

Table 8.5 Vegetables, dual purpose: Disposition and value

[Cauliflower and celery disposition data are not publishable]

Item Year Fresh Market Processing

Production Price received Value of production Production Price received Value of production

1,000 cwt. Dollars per cwt. 1,000 dollars Tons Dollars per ton 1,000 dollars

Asparagus
1993 34 69.00 2,346 12,550 1,180.00 14,809

1994 22 67.00 1,474 10,600 1,200.00 12,720

1995 36 71.00 2,556 13,500 1,300.00 17,550

1996 33 79.00 2,607 13,260 1,320.00 17,503

1997 39 80.00 3,120 11,200 1,310.00 14,672

Table 8.6 Pickle stocks: United States October 1

[Individual Michigan data is not available]

Year From current stock year From previous year crop Total stocks

Salt stock including dill Fresh pack Refrigerated Salt stock including dill Fresh pack

Tons

1993
281,510 152,150 6,110 11,080 710 451,560

1994
288,630 131,490 8,220 49,680 230 478,250

1995
244,860 91,550 6,980 26,900 2,310 372,600

1996
218,230 110,920 7,810 53,520 2,490 392,970

1997
210,420 46,530 5,270 18,970 1,000 282,190

Mushrooms

Michigan growers sold 13.6 million pounds of Agaricus (white button) mushrooms during the 1996-1997 marketing year compared to last year's 14.4 million, a 5 percent decrease. Michigan maintained its fifth place ranking behind California, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Ohio. Growers in the state used 2.6 million square feet of bed and tray space to harvest this season's crop. The price per pound averaged $1.08. This was a 2 percent decrease. As a result, the value of sales fell to $14.7 million, $1.1 million less than last season. The Agaricus mushrooms are grown in specially built mushroom houses where humidity and temperatures are carefully controlled year round. The available square footage can be filled three or more times during the year to account for the total area in production. Growers in Michigan also produce some specialty mushrooms grown on both indoor and outdoor natural wood logs.

Table 8.7 Mushrooms: Area, production, and value
[Marketing year begins July 1 and ends June 30 of the following year]
Year	Area in production	Production	Yield per square foot	Price per pound	Value of production
	1,000 sq. ft.	1,000 pounds	Pounds	Cents	1,000 dollars
1992-93	2,590	15,411	5.95	98.5	15,174
1993-94	2,578	14,736	5.72	94.2	13,881
1994-95	2,581	14,877	5.76	93.8	13,958
1995-96	2,595	14,414	5.55	110.0	15,818
1996-97	2,572	13,638	5.30	108.0	14,679

Table 8.2 Vegetables, processing: Area, production, and value
[Green peas are not published to avoid disclosure of individual operations]
Item	Year	Area		Production		Price received	Value of production
Item	Year	Planted	Harvested	Per acre	Total	Price received	Value of production
		Acres	Acres	Tons	Tons	Dollars per ton	1,000 dollars
Beans, snap	1993	23,000	22,000	3.20	70,400	180.00	12,672
	1994	23,000	22,000	3.50	77,000	147.00	11,319
	1995	23,000	21,500	2.86	61,490	162.00	9,961
	1996	22,000	21,000	3.30	69,300	164.00	11,365
	1997	23,200	22,800	3.45	78,660	171.00	13,451

Carrots	1993	2,000	1,900	19.50	37,050	50.50	1,871
	1994	1,900	1,800	23.00	41,400	57.10	2,364
	1995	1,700	1,600	21.00	33,600	59.70	2,006
	1996	1,700	1,600	23.00	36,800	65.10	2,396
	1997	1,600	1,500	25.00	37,500	62.40	2,340

Corn, sweet	1993	7,000	7,000	6.30	44,100	76.00	3,352
	1994	7,100	7,100	6.50	46,150	65.00	3,000
	1995	5,000	4,100	6.00	24,600	70.00	1,722
	1996	3,900	3,700	6.75	24,980	82.00	2,048
	1997	(1)	(1)	(1)	(1)	(1)	(1)

Cucumbers for pickles	1993	23,000	22,000	5.80	127,600	155.00	19,778
	1994	24,500	24,000	5.50	132,000	164.00	21,648
	1995	28,000	26,000	5.50	143,000	149.00	21,307
	1996	28,000	26,000	5.30	137,800	156.00	21,497
	1997	26,000	25,000	5.20	130,000	152.00	19,760

Tomatoes	1993	6,600	6,500	28.00	182,000	69.50	12,649
	1994	4,600	4,500	32.00	144,000	73.80	10,627
	1995	4,600	4,500	30.00	135,000	65.70	8,870
	1996	4,600	4,400	32.50	143,000	73.70	10,539
	1997	3,800	3,800	32.50	123,500	73.30	9,053
¹ Sweet corn for processing is not longer grown commercially in Michigan.

Table 8.5 Vegetables, dual purpose: Disposition and value
[Cauliflower and celery disposition data are not publishable]
Item	Year	Fresh Market			Processing
Item	Year	Production	Price received	Value of production	Production	Price received	Value of production
		1,000 cwt.	Dollars per cwt.	1,000 dollars	Tons	Dollars per ton	1,000 dollars
Asparagus	1993	34	69.00	2,346	12,550	1,180.00	14,809
	1994	22	67.00	1,474	10,600	1,200.00	12,720
	1995	36	71.00	2,556	13,500	1,300.00	17,550
	1996	33	79.00	2,607	13,260	1,320.00	17,503
	1997	39	80.00	3,120	11,200	1,310.00	14,672

Table 8.6 Pickle stocks: United States October 1
[Individual Michigan data is not available]
Year	From current stock year			From previous year crop		Total stocks
Year	Salt stock including dill	Fresh pack	Refrigerated	Salt stock including dill	Fresh pack	Total stocks
	Tons
1993	281,510	152,150	6,110	11,080	710	451,560
1994	288,630	131,490	8,220	49,680	230	478,250
1995	244,860	91,550	6,980	26,900	2,310	372,600
1996	218,230	110,920	7,810	53,520	2,490	392,970
1997	210,420	46,530	5,270	18,970	1,000	282,190