How much could Alaskans actually grow?
Managers at the Matanuska-Susitna Borough asked the same question as they researched what it would take to open Alaska’s first processing facility in the Valley. A processing facility (or more than one) would make it possible to extend the shelf life of agricultural products grown in Alaska by bottling, flash- freezing, and canning Alaska Grown food. When farmers were approached by the Borough and asked point blank what their capacity is, the response was overwhelmingly, “if you give me a contract for next year, I’ll grow it.” Essentially, producers wanted to make sure there was a market before they expanded their production. There is not conclusive data as to what farming capacity in Alaska is – yet. Studies have been conducted in other parts of the country to determine this figure, and ACE is confident that Alaskans will prioritize this research in the near future so we can fully understand what we can grow and how many people it will feed. However, in the meantime many Alaskan farme
