2025 USDA vegetable crop report: Record yields, lower prices and mixed markets
USDA released its 2025 December vegetable crop report. Check it out to get a snapshot of where several crops stand heading into 2026.
The report also shows high yields partially offset year-over-year declines in planted acreage for all three commodities:
- The 2025 U.S. average potato yield forecast is 461 hundredweight per acre with year-over-year yield increases in 8 of the 13 NASS-surveyed States.
- Dry edible bean U.S. average yield is 2,203 pounds per acre, up 6% from 2024. Top dry bean-producing States Michigan, North Dakota, and Nebraska are projected to set record State-level yields in 2025.
- California processing tomato yield forecast (contract only) is 55 tons per acre in 2025 — a 10% increase from 2024 and 13% higher than the previous 5-year average.
Weather impacts
Fall 2025 was wet in the west but dry in the southeast. In California, ample rain filled aquifers and reservoirs, helping resolve mild drought conditions in many vegetable producing areas. In the southeastern United States, extreme weather did not damage crops, orchards or greenhouses. But fewer storms mean less precipitation, and the worst drought conditions since 2011 have developed in parts of Florida, particularly in the north of the State.
Fresh vegetables
Processing vegetables
Processing tomatoes make up most of the processing vegetables grown in the United States by volume. In 2025, record yields for processing tomatoes in California are expected to largely offset declines in contracted acreage.
Potatoes
The 2025 U.S. potato production forecast is 412.1 million hundredweight (cwt), down 2% from last year. The 2025 U.S. average yield forecast is the highest on record (461 cwt per acre) and partially offsets a 3.5% decline in harvested acreage. Despite the smaller crop, fresh potato grower prices in the first 2 months of the potato marketing year (September– October) were lower than a year ago.
Mushrooms
In the 2024/25 crop year (July–June), the value of all mushrooms (Agaricus and specialty) was $1.1 billion, up 1% ($11.3 million) from 2023/24.
Pulse crops
Production in 2025 for dry pea, lentil and chickpea is forecasted to increase by 23%, 22% and 32% respectively, supported by higher yields. In contrast, dry bean production declined 4% in 2025 despite record-high yields averaging 2,203 pounds per acre, as acreage reductions outweighed yield gains. Grower prices across pulse crops are trending lower in the 2025/26 marketing year-to-date from the previous year.
You can view the full USDA 2025 Vegetables and Pulses Outlook: December 2025 report below: