Every five years the USDA conducts an agricultural census in order to better understand changes in the agricultural landscape. The latest release occurred in mid-February 2024 and provided a glimpse into the landscape of agriculture throughout the U.S.
With respect to Georgia, the market value of agricultural products increased by 16% to over $13 billion. Georgia ranked second in the Southeast in market value of products sold behind North Carolina. However, the number of farms decreased by 7% from 2017 to 2022 with just under 40,000 farms in Georgia. The amount of acreage remained relatively the same, but average farm size increased from 235 to 253 acres (or an 8% increase). The largest losses in farm numbers came at the 1-9 acre level (decreased by 26%) while 2,000+ acre farm numbers increased by 22%.
Georgia farms also saw changes in the legal structure of farms. The number of family/individual and partnerships decreased by 9% and 7%, respectively. However, farms as corporations increased by 18%.
Examining individual Georgia agricultural sectors, Georgia experienced the following with respect to market value of crops sold:
-Nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, sod increased by 15% to $441 million
-Poultry and eggs increased by 22% to $7.9 billion
-Cattle and calves decreased by 12% to $380 million
-Cotton increased by 39% to $1.2 billion
-Vegetables, melons, potatoes, increased by 1% to $681 million
-Fruits, tree nuts, and berries decreased by 3% to $486 million
Comparing Georgia to other Southeastern states, Georgia fared better is the smallest decrease in the number of farms and having a stable farm acreage compared to many Southeastern states that had a large number of acres moving out of agriculture.
For more detailed information, please visit the following links for more detailed factsheets regarding Georgia agricultural and the latest agricultural census.
Georgia agricultural factsheet
Southeastern agricultural comparison factsheet
For more detailed information about our extension and research efforts, please visit the UGA Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics extension page:
https://agecon.uga.edu/extension.html
Ben Campbell
Associate Professor
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics
University of Georgia
ben.campbell@uga.edu
706-542-0852