Family Life

01.30.13 | Sarah Harnisch

Federal agriculture officials say New York state's strawberry crop took a hit last year, but blueberry production was up. The Department of Agriculture says strawberry production dropped to 3-point-2 million pounds, down 11 percent from 2011. Many farms reported shortened seasons because of a snap of cold weather that generally hit early crops around the state. New York state is the eighth largest producer of strawberries in the country. The value of its crop dropped 19 percent last year to just below 7-million dollars. Nationally, strawberry production was up 4 percent. Meantime, the state's blueberry harvest was 2 million pounds, up 5 percent from a year earlier, but the value of the crop dropped 2 percent to just below 4-million dollars. The U.S. harvest was up 7 percent.