2009 PRESS RELEASES
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October 13, 2009
VIRGINIA’S PUMPKIN CROP LOOKING GOOD THIS YEAR, SHOULD YIELD NEARLY 70 MILLION POUNDS OF PUMPKINS
Contact: Elaine J. Lidholm, 804.786.7686
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced today that across the state, the 2009 pumpkin crop is good, and in many places, excellent. VDACS estimates that Virginia farmers will sell around 67.5 million pounds of pumpkins this year. That figure is based on three thousand acres with 1,500 saleable pumpkins per acre or 4.5 million pumpkins with an average weight of 15 pounds each. Some experts think the yield might even be higher per acre, which would increase that total. The value of the crop to the growers is estimated to be around $10 million this year.
“The 2009 harvest has produced exactly what we hope for in pumpkins,” said Todd P. Haymore, VDACS Commissioner. “They have beautiful color and good size. This is the year of the specialty pumpkin. Many consumers are interested in the big or giant varieties, 50 or even 100 pounds and up. Regardless of what type of pumpkin you choose, I encourage all Virginians to buy Virginia Grown pumpkins this year, and of course we welcome out-of-state buyers, too.”
Popular pumpkins this year include white ones of all sizes and the scary-looking ones with bumps and veining all over them. Several new specialty pumpkins are extremely popular: ones with goose bumps, a new pumpkin called Knuckle Head and the so-called peanut pumpkin or Galeuse D'Eysines. This is a short, fat pumpkin that looks like someone stuck peanuts in the flesh while it was growing. The smaller pie pumpkin is in demand, especially for school children on field trips. But for the average door step or porch, the basic orange Halloween pumpkin is still the preferred choice.
For a listing of fall festivals, many of which celebrate the pumpkin and other fall agricultural products such as apples and gourds, see www.vdacs.virginia.gov/news/festival.shtml and scroll down to October.