Food and Resource Economics Department

Vegetables, Melons & Potatoes

Harvesting Roots and Vines

Operations involved in vegetable, melon, and potato farming include those growing vegetable, melon, and/or potato crops, seeds, or bedding plants. These crops tend to have an annual growth cycle and are grown in open fields. Climate and farming practices can limit production areas but often permit the growing of a combination of crops in a calendar year. These crops also tend to be labor intensive, especially when it comes to harvesting.

Florida harvested nearly 200,000 acres of vegetable, melon, and potato crops in 2023.

United States Rankings

Harvested Acres for Select Crops (2023)

Direct Economic Contributions (2022)

When considering multiplier effects, Florida’s vegetable, melon, and potato farmers support $2.39 billion in sales revenue and 14,412 jobs throughout the state’s economy.

Sources

USDA/NASS Vegetables and Pulses Yearbook Tables, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. Available at: https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/vegetables-and-pulses-data/vegetables-and-pulses-yearbook-tables/

USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. (2024). 2022 Census of Agriculture. USDA-NASS. https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_1_US/usv1.pdf

USDA/NASS 2023 State Agriculture Overview, Florida, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. Available at: nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stats/Ag_Overview/stateOverview.php?state=FLORIDA

“Economic Contributions of Agriculture, Natural Resource, and Food Industries in Florida in 2022.” Economic Impact Analysis Program, University of Florida-IFAS, Food & Resource Economics Department, Gainesville, FL, 2024. Available at: fred.ifas.ufl.edu/extension/economic-impact-analysis-program/florida-ag-food-and-resources

USDA/NASS Cash Receipts by Commodity State Ranking, 2023, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. Available at: https://data.ers.usda.gov/reports.aspx?ID=4058