Extension Articles
Preserving America’s Heritage Crops: Low Consumer Awareness Makes Market-Based Conservation Challenging
(with Yefan Nian, Dave Lamie, and Michael Vassalos) - Southern Ag Today 5(28.5), July 11, 2025.
Heritage crops, grown from open-pollinated old cultivars, carry cultural, culinary, and biodiversity value, but they can cost more to grow than modern alternatives, so growers need a price premium to make them a profitable choice. A national consumer survey finds that more than half of U.S. consumers are unaware or only slightly aware of heritage varieties, and awareness in the Southeast is no higher than the national average—a critical challenge for conserving these crops through market-based strategies. Consumers show a moderate willingness to pay a premium for heritage rice and tomato, but are less inclined to pay more for heritage apple, cabbage, and squash.
Southern Regional Strawberry Production Guide
(with Mark Hoffmann, Amanda McWhirt, Jayesh Samtani, Christle Moore, Guido Schnabel, Hannah Dankbar, Gina Fernandez, Chip Simmons, Penelope Perkins-Veazie, Barclay Poling, David Lockwood, Roy Flanagan, Erin Eure, Kathryn Holmes, Rebecca Melanson, Kristin Hicks, Aaron Cato, and Sanjun Gu) - NC State Extension, 2024, AG-645.
A multi-state extension guide to annual hill plasticulture strawberry production in the Southeastern United States, drawing on twenty authors from the region’s land-grant universities and Cooperative Extension services. Alongside chapters on varieties, plant establishment, nutrient and water management, and pest and disease management, it includes sections on general marketing and the economics of strawberry production.
Economic and Pest Management Evaluation of the Proposed Regulation of Nitroguanidine-Substituted Neonicotinoid Insecticides: Six Major California Commodities
(with Yanan Zheng, Rachael Goodhue, Kevi Mace, Jess Rudder, Tor Tolhurst, Hanlin Wei, Beth Grafton-Cardwell, Ian Grettenberger, Houston Wilson, Robert Van Steenwyk, Frank Zalom, Monique Rivera, and John Steggall) - ARE Update 26(6), 2023, 9–11. University of California Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics.
A summary for policymakers and industry of the projected pest management cost increases from California’s proposed regulation of nitroguanidine-substituted neonicotinoid insecticides across six major California commodities.
Specialty Crops in 2020: COVID-19 and Other Challenges
In this Winter 2021 installment of the NC State Economist, Dr. Daniel Tregeagle highlights the impacts of Covid-19 on North Carolina’s specialty crop producers and markets. He also reveals the results of a recent survey of caneberry growers on the trends, challenges and opportunities in their specialty crop sector.
Estimated Cost of the Withdrawal of the Insecticide Chlorpyrifos for Six Major California Crops
In May 2019, the CA Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) initiated the cancellation of the pesticide chlorpyrifos. This article estimates the economic effects of cancellation on six major California crops. Statewide annual revenue losses are estimated at $11.5 million, averaged across acreage and pesticide use for three base years (2015–2017): $1.6 million for alfalfa, $0.6 million for almonds, $1 million for citrus, $7.1 million for cotton, $4.3 million for grapes, and $3.2 million for walnuts. In addition, gross revenue losses due to reduced cotton yields are estimated to be $6.3 million. Importantly, estimated losses are for only six crops. The total cost to California agriculture will be greater.
Implications of Disrupting a Perennial Crop Replanting Cycle: The Brazilian Sugarcane Example
Brazilian sugarcane yields declined sharply in 2011, ending a decade-long expansion of the industry. In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, credit-constrained farmers replanted fewer sugarcane fields, leading to an increase in the average age of canes and a decline in yield several years later. Had average age remained constant over this period, industry revenues would have been around 10% higher in 2011 and 2012. This example shows how interruptions to the regular replanting schedules of a perennial crop can have production effects years into the future.
Economic Value of the Herbicide Dacthal for Brassica and Allium Crops in California
California review of the herbicide dacthal triggered by the requirements of California’s Pesticide Contamination Prevention Act was conducted in 2018. This article estimates the economic effects a cancellation of dacthal’s California registration would have on brassica and allium crops. Statewide net revenue losses for broccoli, dry onion, and cabbage, the largest users of dacthal, are estimated at $25.4 million: $17.9 million for broccoli, $2.4 million for cabbage, and $5.1 million for onion.
Reports
North Carolina Green Industry Impact Report 2023–2024
(with Melinda Knuth and Rajan Parajuli) - Submitted to the North Carolina Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources, January 17, 2025.
An assessment of the economic contribution of North Carolina’s green industry, prepared for the state legislature.