Top Delaware Agriculture Facts From the 2024 Census of Agriculture
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Delaware might be a small state, but its agriculture industry makes a big impact. According to the USDA’s most recent Census of Agriculture, Delaware has 2,158 farms with a market value of agricultural products sold totaling more than $2.1 billion. (The 2022 Census of Agriculture data was released in February 2024 and is the most recent census data available.)
The number of farms in Delaware has decreased by 6% since 2017 and by 10% since 2002. However, there are still more than 522,000 acres of farm land in Delaware, and the state’s average farm size is 242 acres.
The market value of crops grown in Delaware, including nursery and greenhouse crops, totaled more than $470 million in 2022. The market value of livestock, poultry and their products, including beef, pork, chicken, dairy and eggs, came to more than $1.6 billion.
What Are Delaware’s Top Agricultural Products?
According to the most recent available cash receipts (the total amount of crops or livestock sold in a calendar year), Delaware’s top agricultural products include broilers (chickens raised for meat), corn, soybeans, chicken eggs and wheat, to name a few.
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Who Owns Delaware Farms?
The Census of Agriculture calculates farm ownership by the farm’s legal status for tax purposes. Like many states, Delaware farms are primarily owned and operated by families or individuals, with 1,558 family farms as of 2022, or about 72% of all farms in the state. Corporations accounted for 364 farms, or nearly 17%, while 174 farms, or 8%, are owned by partnerships. Other farms, such as estates or trusts, prison farms, grazing associations, American Indian Reservations, etc., make up about 2.9% of farms in Delaware.
Delaware farmers are predominantly men. According to the Census of Agriculture, there were 2,507 male farmers in Delaware in 2022, making up 66% of the state’s total producers. Delaware’s 1,305 women farmers accounted for 34% of the total.
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How Old Are Delaware Farmers?
Out of 3,812 farmers in Delaware, most are over the age of 55. In fact, the average age of a Delaware farmer is 58.8 years old, up from 57.4 years in 2017.
Just over a quarter of Delaware farmers (26.1%) fall into the age group of 55 to 64 years, and 22.6% of farmers are ages 65 to 74. Farmers aged 75 and over account for 16.3%, followed by farmers ranging from 45 to 54 years old (15.5%), then farmers ages 35 to 44 (10.5%). Only 7.3% of farmers are ages 25 to 34, and just 67 Delaware farmers are under 25, or about 1.7%.
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More Delaware Farm Facts
Though the state counts more than 3,800 agricultural producers, 46% of Delaware farmers have a primary occupation other than farming. Only about 2,000 respondents to the Census of Agriculture said their primary occupation was farming.
Active duty military members and veterans also account for some farmers, as Delaware has 310 farmers with current or past military service.
Delaware is home to 12 USDA-certified organic farms, up from 9 in 2017.
The state has 950 new and beginning producers, up from 851 in 2017.
Delaware is also home to a budding floriculture industry. The value of sales for floriculture and bedding crops totaled more than $4.5 million in 2022.