Belle Glade AREC Research Report EV-1983-8


Economic Importance of the Everglades Agricultural Area, 1982-83*


Jose Alvarez


and Kenneth D. Shul **
HUME LIBRARY

\ NOV 30 1983

I.F.A.S.- Univ. of Florida


MARTIN

GLADES --KECH3--

-----" -PALM
HENDRY BEACH


A 1ft~ A


*Data were provided by the Florida Sugar Cane League and Extension Agents
in the four Counties: Kenneth D. Shuler and Frederick E. Boss (Palm Beach),
Robert B. Whitty (Martin), Billy 0. Bass (Glades), and Dallas B. Townsend
(Hendry).
**Area Economist, University of Florida, AREC Belle Glade, and Extension
Agent, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Belle Glade, respectively.


November, 1983


E V C, [ ft Ci f DO 6,






Explanatory Notes

Acreage:
-Most vegetable land is cropped more than once by replanting the same

or other crop. In general, an average of two crops are produced.

-Lettuce figures include Bibb, Boston, Iceburg,Leaf and Romaine lettuce.

-Radishes acreage reflects the fact that the same field produces more

than one crop in a season.

-Sweet corn includes both yellow and white corn. Acreage is the total

for fall, winter, and spring crops.

-Miscellaneous vegetables include carrots, mustard, okra, turnip greens,
and others for which acreage figures are not available.

-Field corn,sorghum and rice are generally grown on sugarcane land fal-

lowed during the spring and summer. Data are for 1982 summer from ASCS
records.

-The sugarcane figure includes 13,900 acres harvested for seed.

Production:

-Although these commodities are sold by different units of weight (e.g.,
bushels, crates, cartons, etc.), all were converted to hundredweights (cwt)

for comparison purposes. Most conversion factors are those used by the
Florida Crop and Livestock Reporting Service.

--Sugarcane figures represent 12,840,000 gross tons of cane; 1,306,647
tons of raw sugar and 81,028,000 gallons of molasses.

Value:

Thetotal value of these commodities was about $718 million. If sales by
the agribusinesses supplying inputs and services for these commodities were

added, and if the multiplier effect were considered (in terms of other income
and employment generated by these commodities), the economic importance of %h.

Everglades Agricultural Area would emerge even larger than the numbers shown
in the table.










ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF THE EVERGLADES AGRICULTURAL AREA


1982-83


ACREAGE


PRODUCTION
(CWT)


VALUE


Vegetables
Beans
Cabbage
Celery
Chinese Cabbage
Endive
Escarole
Lettuce
Parsley
Peppers
Radishes
Sweet Corn
Miscellaneous
Citrus
Watermelons
Sod
Field Corn
Rice
Sorghum
Beef Cattle
Horses
Sugarcane
Sugar
Molasses
TOTAL


417
550
8,078
1,200
2,600
2,500
15,000
1,600
300
28,000
23,200

2,750
250
13,905
9,923
4,331
902

3,000
355,300


23,037
142,658
3,455,090
112,054
31,677
31,722
1,604,246
71,396
56,250
660,025
2,168,517

855,000
75,000

459,170
165,477
40,414



256,800,000
26,132,940


$ 788,450
1,037,012
44,429,000
1,204,063
3,762,978
3,552,794
24,876,413
1,836,516
1,038,000
24,719,217
30,183,321
3,215,581
3,800,000
900,000
19,859,894
1,885,878
1,489,293
157,326
4,605,250
2,300,000


522,658,800
19,446,720
$ 717,746,506


COMMODITY