Sales of organic specialty crops grown in the U.S. rose by about 124 percent from 2014 to 2019, according to the Organic Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sales of organic U.S. vegetables increased from $1,248 million to $2,084 million during that period, while sales of organic fruits and tree nuts more than tripled from $586 million in 2014 to $2,022 million in 2019. Top organic vegetables grown in the country in 2019 were lettuce ($400.11 million), spinach ($179.50 million), potatoes ($154.94 million), tomatoes (132.33 million), and carrots ($131.81 million); they constituted 47.9 percent of the U.S. organic vegetables sold. On the other hand, 75.8 percent of all organic fruits sales were for apples ($474.70 million), grapes ($332.49 million), strawberries ($320.79 million), blueberries ($205.23 million), and citrus ($115.87 million). In 2019, organic tree nuts sales totaled $109.75 million, and the main crops grown were walnuts, almonds, pecans, pistachios, and hazelnuts.
Zapata, Samuel. “Growing Value of U.S. Organic Specialty Crop Sales.” Southern Ag Today 1(45.5). November 5, 2021. Permalink
