Pumpkins: Background & Statistics

Pumpkin production is widely dispersed throughout the United States, with crop conditions varying greatly by region. All States produce some pumpkins but in 2012, about half of pumpkin acres were grown in 6 States and about 80 percent were grown in 16 States (2012 U.S. Census of Agriculture, USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)). In 2017, Illinois remained the largest producer, harvesting about 3-5 times as many pumpkin acres as any of the other top States (Figure 1). From year to year, the amount of pumpkin acres that U.S. farmers harvest changes up to 25 percent in top States, but averages since 2012 have been fairly stable to slightly declining.