Source: NCDA&CS, 9/15/16


The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its 2015 Certified Organic Production Report today from the survey conducted earlier this year. The survey queried all known USDA-certified organic farms across North Carolina. 

“Organic farming continues to grow in North Carolina,” said Dee Webb, North Carolina state statistician. “We now rank 16th in the nation in total value of certified organic agricultural products sold from 203 certified organic farms.”

In 2015, North Carolina’s 203 USDA-certified organic farms sold a total of $82.4 million in organically produced commodities, including $56.6 million in crops sales and $25.8 million in sales of livestock, poultry and their products. 

“The top three commodities in certified organic sales were tobacco at $29.3 million, chicken eggs at $21.2 million, followed by sweet potatoes bringing in $10 million,” Webb said. 

The 203 certified organic farms comprised 28,727 acres of land. Eighty-three percent, or 23,719 acres, is cropland, and 5,008 is in pasture or rangeland. An additional 3,074 acres are transitioning to organic production on certified farms.

In North Carolina, 32 percent of the farms sold at least some products directly to consumers, via farm stands, farmers’ markets, Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs), and other arrangements. Twenty percent sold to retail or food service, and 77 percent of farms used wholesale markets. Thirteen farms sold products through a CSA. 

Of the 203 operators, 33 percent have been farming less than 10 years, and 44 percent have grown or raised certified organic products less than five years. Eighty-six farms plan to increase production during the next five years and 75 farms expect to maintain production.

The 2015 Certified Organic Production Report provides acreage, production and sales data for a variety of certified organic crops and inventory and sales data for certified organic livestock commodities. The 2015 Certified Organic Production Survey included all known farm operators who produced certified organic crops and/or livestock.

To learn more about this and other NASS surveys and corresponding data in North Carolina, visit https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/North_Carolina/. To sign up to be counted in the Census and other surveys, visit https://www.agcounts.usda.gov/cgi-bin/counts/.