New county study: Monterey agriculture contributes more than $11.7 billion, supports 81,315 FTE jobs

A new economic contribution report presented to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 13 finds that agriculture's total 2023 contribution in the county exceeded $11.7 billion and supported roughly 81,315 full-time-equivalent jobs.

Assistant Agricultural Commissioner Rich Ordonez introduced the fourth edition of the county's economic contributions series. Co-authors Dr. Fernando DePaulis and Dr. Jeff Langholz said the analysis adds food processing and multiplier effects to the traditional crop-value accounting to give a fuller picture of agriculture's role in the local economy. The report breaks the total into three parts: $4.77 billion in food production, $3.13 billion in local processing, and $3.81 billion in induced and indirect multiplier effects.

The authors estimated about 56,365 direct production and processing FTE positions and another 24,951 jobs attributable to multiplier spending, for a combined 81,315 FTEs. The report also calculates an agricultural diversification index of 0.57 (on a 0–1 scale), which the presenters said is slightly above the mid-point among comparable California counties and indicates relative resilience.

Supervisors used the presentation to discuss the implications for workforce, water and pest pressures, and where future planning and economic development efforts might focus. Public commenters and industry representatives lauded the study and urged continued support for workers, Cooperative Extension coordination and attention to emerging threats such as pests and localized contamination issues tied to the Moss Landing incident.