Most of us eat some type of specialty crop every single day. Whether you’re eating your fruits and vegetables, or even using certain seasonings to help complete that perfect dish, you’re using specialty crops.
Malgre prévalence a toupatou nan rekòt espesyalite - ansanm ak lefèt yo kounye a posede yon valè sou mache a $79.8 milya dola (ki konte pou plis pase 16% nan pwodiksyon total agrikòl) - souvan segman sa a nan agrikilti vin neglije.
Li fasil pou konprann poukisa. "Rekòt espesyalite" se yon tèm relativman laj, epi youn ki anglobe anpil bagay diferan. Dapre Farm Bill 2004 la, rekòt espesyal yo defini kòm "fwi ak legim, nwa pye bwa, fwi sèk, ortikol, ak rekòt pepinyè (ki gen ladan florikilti)." Menm definisyon sa a laj, paske anpil pwodwi diferan ka tonbe anba "fwi" ak "legim". Epi souvan, lè nou pale sou agrikilti, konsantre nan twouve li vize prensipalman nan rekòt ranje oswa agrikilti bèt. Pandan ke rekòt ranje yo konstitye yon kèk rekòt seleksyone ki souvan rekòlte ak yon konbine epi ki reprezante majorite nan tè agrikòl US, rekòt espesyal yo pi souvan jwenn nan Kalifòni ak Florid.
Sepandan, kantite rekòt espesyal yo te plante yo ap grandi pi plis ak plis nan zòn atravè peyi Etazini. Estimasyon resan yo te jwenn kounye a gen plis pase 184,000 fèm rekòt espesyal ki kouvri plis pase 10.4 milyon kawo tè tè agrikòl.. Malgre lefèt ke pwodiksyon espesyalite rekòt Ameriken an se yon gwo pati nan pwodiksyon an jeneral agrikòl Etazini, li fè fas a yon kantite defi enpòtan.
U.S. producers often find themselves at a disadvantage on a global (and even domestic) scale because, in most areas across the country, year-round production is impossible. And, unlike with row crops, specialty crops can’t be raised in bulk and stored to be sold throughout the year due to freshness concerns. In addition, specialty crops are often much more weather sensitive than their counterparts. This makes them extremely vulnerable to instances like the recent extreme weather seen across the southern part of the U.S., one which resulted in specialty crop losses of more than $600 million.
Pou vin pi mal, pwodiksyon domestik tou te frape anpil pa lagè komès kontinyèl la. Ozetazini kontinye ap enpòte yon kantite pwodui espesyalite, ki fè pri domestik yo desann, e lòt peyi yo te frape rekòt espesyal ki pwodui nan Etazini ak tarif yo wo. Pandan se tan, Ewòp te enpoze plis pase 4 milya dola nan tarif yo sou yon kantite pwodwi US. Enpak yo nan tarif sa yo ta ka sibstansyèl, ak NC State estimating sweet potato exports alone potentially seeing a reduction of $70 million.
And, as is the case with most things, specialty crops have been negatively impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Before COVID-19 emerged last spring, li te estime ke pwodiksyon frèz Laflorid pou kont li te manke 30% nan travay li te bezwen an. Rekòt espesyal yo se youn nan fòm agrikilti ki pi travayè ki egziste jodi a. Sa a se paske pifò operasyon yo gen yon gwo depandans sou H-2A travayè agrikòl tanporè. Pandan pandemi an, anpil nan travayè sa yo te sispann vin Ozetazini, e moun ki te pèmèt yo te oblije gen akomodasyon espesyal, paske pwodiktè yo dwe bay travayè sa yo lojman tou. Menm anvan pandemi an, sepandan, demann pou travayè yo te deja depase rezèv la.
Pandan ke anpil defi egziste, se pa tout move nouvèl pou sektè rekòt espesyalite a. Yo prevwa yon to kwasans anyèl 2.6% pandan pwochen dekad la, epi pri komodite yo te deja monte prèske 40% depi 2011. Finalman, men, li rete yo dwe wè si defi yo fè fas a rekòt espesyalite yo pral limite nan ki nivo pwodiktè yo kapab pran avantaj de opòtinite pou kwasans.
Ogmante inovasyon nan mitan manifaktirè ekipman yo
Specialty crops are often sold in the form they are harvested, largely because aesthetics matter to many consumers. This has made developing harvesting equipment even more difficult, as most people don’t want to buy bruised or damaged fruits and vegetables. As a result, several manufacturers have found ways to develop machinery that can harvest these products in a gentle enough way, so as not to damage the product. Doing so has helped make the equipment more appealing and for some specialty crop products, such as potatoes, harvesting equipment has been around for ages. However, for most harvesting equipment is still relatively new and not as widely adopted.
While the mechanization of specialty crop harvesting has been slow and very difficult due to the nature of the crop and consumer expectations, a number of products are already on the market today, including harvesters from AEM member companies New Holland, Pellenc, Gregoire, The Morning Star Co. and Oxbo.
Pifò nan machin sa yo ka matche ak pwodiksyon an nan 20 moun sou yon baz pou chak èdtan. Sa ale yon fason lontan nan ede abòde mank de travayè ke endistri sa a fè fas a, pandan y ap bay tou yon sous manje ki pi an sekirite ak serye. Nan diminye bezwen travay, machin tou amelyore maj pwodiktè akòz pri travay la redwi ki ta dwe bezwen. An tou, yo fè endistri a pi atiran nan yon pwendvi pwodiktè atravè maj amelyore ak yon pwendvi travayè akòz travay fizik redwi ak pi bon peye, travay kalifye.
Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM”s) Specialty Crops Leadership Group
The previously mentioned harvesting companies, along with John Deere (specialty crop tractors), Kubota (specialty crop tractors and sprayers), and GUSS Automation (autonomous orchard sprayers), comprise AEM’s newly formed Specialty Crop Leadership Group. The group was formed in alignment with AEM’s Ag Sector Board’s recently approved priority of expanding AEM’s reach and role into specialty crops. Ultimately, the purpose of this group is to help identify how AEM can better serve the specialty crop industry as a whole. Throughout the upcoming year, plans are in the works to educate both end user and regulators about specialty crops – specifically why specialty crops matter and the importance of making people aware of the technologies that exist.
Despite being often overlooked by the general public, specialty crops are now among the largest agricultural outputs in the U.S. today. And, as previously mentioned, both opportunities and challenges exist for what is one of the most labor-intensive industries around. However, AEM is committed to working with company leaders to better meet the needs, wants and demands of equipment end users who have helped make the specialty crop industry what it is today. Accomplishing all these things, and many more, is what AEM Leadership Groups are all about.
Aprann plis sou AEM’s Specialty Crop Leadership Group ak other leadership groups like it.
- Austin Gellings, Association of Equipment Manufacturers Agricultural Services Manager