Cannabis Included (Sort Of) in 2021 Sonoma County Crop Report
By Lauren Mendelsohn
October 9, 2022
For the first time ever, cannabis was included – in an addendum – in the annual Sonoma County Crop Report. The county Crop Report is produced each year by the Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures (“AWM”) and provides a snapshot of local crop and livestock production statistics. Our office has been advocating for the inclusion of cannabis in Sonoma County’s crop report for years, highlighting how State law (namely Business and Professions Code § 26069.5) explicitly allows for county agricultural commissioners to compile and report cannabis-related data.
The “2021 Cannabis and Hemp Production” addendum contains information about (you guessed it) cannabis and hemp production in the unincorporated areas of Sonoma County during the 2021 year. According to this data, the total value of cannabis produced in the county in 2021 was $122,752,360.00 – and that was all from 212,548 pounds of cannabis produced on just 49.73 acres of land. This means that Sonoma County cannabis has a value of $2,468,376.43 per acre. (Keep that number in mind as you keep reading this post.) It’s quite possible that this is lower than the actual value, given that the data was based at least partially on surveys that not all permitted cannabis cultivators responded to.
A dollar value was not given for 2021 hemp production, though the addendum did state that there were 24.04 acres of permitted hemp cultivation that year. Beginning with the 2022 Sonoma County Crop Report, hemp data will be included with field crop figures.
The Cannabis and Hemp Production Addendum to the 2021 Sonoma County Crop Report.
The main 2021 Sonoma County Crop Report includes data about other crops and livestock produced in Sonoma County, including wine, dairy, apples and more. For example, the total value of wine grape production that year, including both red and white varietals, was $540,954,500.00 which came from 58,671 acres of vineyards. The total value of apple production in Sonoma County was $2,969,300.00 which came from 2,145 acres of orchards. Taking these two examples, that means that the per-acre value of Sonoma County wine grapes – commonly thought to be the most valuable local crop, and from which much of the county’s employment and tourism stems, is $9,220.13. The per-acre value of apples, for which towns like Sebastopol are known, is $1,384.29. Contrast that with the per-acre value of Sonoma County cannabis, which as mentioned above, was $2,468,376.43 in 2021.
Were cannabis (which, as mentioned, had a total countywide value of $122,752,360.00 in 2021) considered a “crop” instead of an “agricultural product” and thus included in the main county crop report, it would be third on Sonoma County’s list of “million dollar crops,” after wine grapes ($540,954,500.00 total value in 2021) and dairy ($124,450,800.00 total value in 2021). The incredible value of cannabis is quite clear.
The “Million Dollar Crops” List in the 2021 Sonoma County Crop Report. If cannabis were legally defined as a “crop” and listed here, it would be the third most valuable countywide.
Sonoma County, though still early for this trend, is not the first county to include cannabis in their crop report or a related addendum: Santa Barbara, Monterey, and a few other jurisdictions across the State already collect and publish this information. (We previously discussed this here.) Hopefully this becomes more common as the stigma against cannabis erodes, making way for new insights into the economic potential for this plant.
This information is provided as a public educational service and is not intended as legal advice. For specific questions regarding cannabis or hemp in California, please contact the Law Offices of Omar Figueroa at 707-829-0215 or info@omarfigueroa.com to schedule a confidential legal consultation.