Chile at Sichler Farms Produce in Los Lunas. Adolphe Pierre-Louis/Journal
For chiles, 2020 wasn’t all bad as New Mexico farmers reported increased production and yield levels for the state’s most famous crop despite pressures related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Numbers released Thursday by the U.S. Agriculture Department’s statistics service show 68,000 tons of red and green chile were produced last year. That’s an 8% increase over the previous year. The value of the crop also increased to nearly $52 million.
“Chile today and hot tamale! That’s the weather forecast,” joked Jeff Witte, head of the New Mexico Agriculture Department.