Top South Carolina Agriculture Facts From the 2024 Census of Agriculture
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South Carolina agriculture produces everything from peaches and cotton to seafood, beef and eggs, and the industry contributes billions to the state economy each year. According to the USDA’s most recent Census of Agriculture, there are 22,633 farms in South Carolina with a market value of agricultural products sold totaling more than $4.5 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 South Carolina has decreased by 9% since 2017 and by 8% since 2002. However, there are still more than 4.5 million acres of farm land in South Carolina, and the state’s average farm size is 201 acres.
The market value of crops grown in South Carolina, including nursery and greenhouse crops, totaled more than $1.6 billion in 2022. The market value of livestock, poultry and their products, including beef, pork, chicken, dairy and eggs, came to over $2.8 billion.
What Are South Carolina’s Top Agricultural Products?
According to the most recent available cash receipts (the total amount of crops or livestock sold in a calendar year), South Carolina’s top agricultural products include broilers (chickens raised for meat), corn, soybeans, cotton and chicken eggs, to name a few.
See More: South Carolina Agriculture
Who Owns South Carolina Farms?
The Census of Agriculture calculates farm ownership by the farm’s legal status for tax purposes. Like many states, South Carolina farms are primarily owned and operated by families or individuals, with 19,820 family farms as of 2022, or about 87.6% of all farms in the state. Corporations account for 1,421 farms, or 6.3%, while partnerships own 1,132 farms, or 5%. Other farms, such as estates or trusts, prison farms, grazing associations, American Indian Reservations, etc., make up about 1% of farms in South Carolina.
South Carolina farmers are predominantly men. According to the Census of Agriculture, there were 24,606 male farmers in South Carolina in 2022, making up 65% of the state’s total producers. South Carolina’s 13,491 women farmers accounted for 35% of the total.
See More: What’s Growing in South Carolina?
How Old Are South Carolina Farmers?
Out of 38,097 farmers in South Carolina, most are over the age of 55. In fact, the average age of a South Carolina farmer is 58.9 years old, up from 58.2 years in 2017.
Just over a quarter of South Carolina farmers (around 26.4%) fall into the age group of 65 to 74 years. 23.9% of farmers are ages 55 to 64. Farmers ranging from 45 to 54 years old account for 16.1%, followed by farmers aged 75 or older (14.4%), then farmers ages 35 to 44 (11.4%). Only 6.1% of farmers are ages 25 to 34, and just 657 South Carolina farmers are under 25, or about 1.7%.
More South Carolina Farm Facts
Though the state counts more than 38,000 agricultural producers, 62% of South Carolina farmers have a primary occupation other than farming. Only about 14,000 respondents to the Census of Agriculture said their primary occupation was farming.
Active duty military members and veterans also account for some farmers. South Carolina has 4,553 farmers with current or past military service.
See More: Holy Cow: South Carolina Dairy Is Thriving
According to the census, there are 2,383 Black farmers in South Carolina who farm 178,041 acres of land across 1,623 farms.
South Carolina is home to 76 USDA-certified organic farms, up from 48 in 2017.
The state counted 12,679 new and beginning producers in 2022, including 5,215 female farmers.
South Carolina farmers harvested 17,361 acres of peaches on 182 farms in 2022.
See More: South Carolina Peach Growers are Blushing with Pride