The Van Trump Report

What Are They Growing Out There in “Wisconsin”

Wisconsin is known as “America’s Dairyland” and is responsible for about a quarter of the country’s cheese production. While farmers in the state also grow a good amount of corn and soybeans, the state’s top crops are a little more unusual – cranberries and ginseng.
Cranberries – Wild cranberries are native to the marshlands of central Wisconsin, and Native Americans have harvested them for centuries. According to the Wisconsin Historical Society, local Ho-Chunk Indians carried on a large trade for them with early settlers of Juneau County in 1849. Commercial production in Wisconsin began near Berlin in Green Lake County in the early 1850s. The center of the industry later moved to marshes around Tomah, Warrens, and Wisconsin Rapids.

Advances in technology and agricultural research helped the industry expand over the last 100 years. In the early 20th century, the Cranberry Experimental Station was set up to investigate drainage methods, insects and diseases, and the value of varieties native to Wisconsin. Thanks partly to this research, by 1956 Wisconsin had become the second largest source of cranberries, behind Massachusetts. In 1994, Wisconsin jumped ahead of Massachusetts to become the country’s leading cranberry producer.

Contrary to popular belief, cranberries do not grow in water. A perennial plant, cranberries grow on low-running vines in sandy bogs and marshes. In Wisconsin, cranberry marshes are flooded with water to aid in harvesting. Because the tart, tiny berries contain a pocket of air, when the marsh is flooded, the berries float to the surface to be picked up by harvesting equipment.

Today, Wisconsin’s $1 billion cranberry industry is mostly made up of fifth and even sixth-generation growers, according to the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association (WISCRAN). The small group of around 250 growers employs nearly 4,000 people in the state, with cranberry marshes covering over 20,000 acres. Wisconsin now accounts for more than 60% of U.S. cranberry production.

Ginseng – Wisconsin is the number one producer of ginseng in the U.S., responsible for around 95% of commercial production. Not only that, Wisconsin-grown ginseng is highly coveted both here in the U.S. and internationally. In 2017, then-governor Scott Walker officially designated the plant as the Wisconsin state herb.

American ginseng is native to the state and has been cultivated in the region for over a hundred years. In 1904, brothers Walter, Edward, John, and Henry Fromm established the first ginseng farm in the state, and soon after, other farmers in the region began to follow in their footsteps. In parallel, demand for Wisconsin ginseng grew, particularly in China.

The subtle difference of the climate and environment in Wisconsin produces ginseng with unique characteristics that differentiate it from its Asian counterparts and other kinds of ginseng found in North America. According to the Ginseng Board of Wisconsin, the alternation of warm summer days and cool nights helps the ginseng respirate and build up sugar, resulting in its distinctive bittersweet taste.

Robert Kaldunski, a grower and president of the Ginseng Board, says ginseng is a notoriously difficult plant to grow; the root takes about five years to fully mature, and in the interim, changes in weather, inadequate nutrients in the soil and a myriad other factors can destroy a crop, sometimes putting years of hard work to waste. Furthermore, the process requires specialized equipment that often has to be custom-built.

In recent years, the number of farms growing ginseng has fallen. The problem isn’t the soil or climate; it’s Washington D.C.. A trade war between the U.S. and China kicked off during the Trump administration and led to the imposition of a +25% tariff on ginseng. President Joe Biden has kept tariffs on China in place, and China has kept theirs. To import U.S. ginseng, Chinese companies now have to pay 32.5% in tariffs. As a result, U.S. ginseng exports to China have fallen -18% since 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (Sources: Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, WISCRAN, Ginseng Board of Wisconsin)

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