A federal report says more than half of the New Mexico's onion crop has been harvested despite the state's extreme drought conditions. Those numbers are up about 10 percent from a week earlier but slightly behind last year's progress at the same point in the season.
Still, Stephanie Walker, extension vegetable specialist with New Mexico State University, says the harvest is going well because pest pressure and disease pressure are low.
Statewide, 34 percent of the onion crop is deemed "fair," 35 percent is considered "good" and 31 percent is considered "excellent."
Last year, officials say New Mexico produced about 286 million pounds of onions, valued at $56.1 million.
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Information from: Las Cruces Sun-News, http://www.lcsun-news.com
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.