1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 NORTH CAROLINA Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 49 406 51 854 Land in farms ..................acres.. 9 122 379 8 936 015 Average size of farm .......acres.. 185 172 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 375 895 269 000 Average per acre .........dollars.. 2 081 1 573 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 49 106 38 452 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 3 968 4 651 10 to 49 acres ...................... 15 601 15 852 50 to 179 acres ..................... 18 259 19 366 180 to 499 acres .................... 7 506 8 007 500 to 999 acres .................... 2 461 2 564 1,000 acres or more ................. 1 611 1 414 Total cropland .................farms.. 44 502 47 497 acres.. 5 608 388 5 578 191 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 38 241 42 135 acres.. 4 233 693 3 998 685 Irrigated land .................farms.. 4 695 4 337 acres.. 156 250 112 630 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 7 676 523 4 834 218 Average per farm .........dollars.. 155 376 93 227 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 2 595 213 1 996 452 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 5 081 310 2 837 765 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 13 653 12 616 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 6 642 7 250 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 6 261 6 968 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 6 470 7 641 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 3 470 4 397 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 2 764 3 640 $100,000 or more .................... 10 146 9 342 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 5 673 379 3 817 833 Average per farm .........dollars.. 114 885 73 621 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 24 355 27 376 Other ............................... 25 051 24 478 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 25 856 25 958 200 days or more ................... 18 028 17 989 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 22 632 22 718 number.. 941 311 901 980 Beef cows ..................farms.. 19 616 19 531 number.. 435 672 385 428 Milk cows ..................farms.. 1 092 1 552 number.. 78 400 99 291 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 21 286 20 771 number.. 443 147 399 035 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 2 986 4 311 number.. 9 624 860 5 100 979 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 2 666 4 012 number.. 36 431 039 10 776 400 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 613 574 number.. 13 827 19 546 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 1 726 2 064 number.. 16 162 563 18 133 946 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 2 086 2 116 number.. 591 248 423 499 071 743 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 8 862 13 052 acres.. 821 039 1 019 871 bushels.. 74 423 999 96 617 840 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 5 949 6 883 acres.. 616 397 490 214 bushels.. 30 357 728 23 164 935 Cotton .......................farms.. 2 320 2 035 acres.. 677 541 357 766 bales.. 916 278 445 466 Tobacco ......................farms.. 12 095 17 625 acres.. 320 599 283 900 pounds.. 703 559 462 604 014 807 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 9 933 13 080 acres.. 1 280 412 1 287 573 bushels.. 35 785 336 34 176 793 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 1 765 2 371 acres.. 122 784 149 210 pounds.. 325 662 397 398 611 000 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 19 761 18 268 acres.. 602 755 466 944 tons, dry.. 1 218 338 922 347 @1Data are based on a sample of farms. Legend: (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual farms (X) Not applicable (Z) Less than half the unit shown (NA) Not available Source: 1997 Census of Agriculture, Volume 1 Geographic Area Series, "Table 1. County Summary Highlights: 1997." This electronic series presents summary statistics for each county and State together with comparable data from the 1992 census. The items included are the same for all States and counties, except selected crops harvested, which vary by State. Data for 1997 and 1992 are directly comparable for acreage and inventories. Dollar values have not been adjusted for changes in price levels. You can obtain the Volume 1 Geographic Area Series from the National Technical Information Service. If you have any questions concerning the data in this report or need additional information or order forms for agriculture publications, please call the National Agricultural Statistics Service at 1-800-523-3215 or 1-800-727-9540.