Grown Where

North Carolina · 2022 Census of Agriculture and NASS annual estimates

What does North Carolina grow?

North Carolina's farms sold $18.7 billion of crops and livestock in 2022, No. 8 among the 50 states. It leads the nation in sweet potatoes. Livestock and animal products make up 75% of its farm sales; it ranks No. 2 in the US for turkeys.

Farm sales, 2022
$18.7 billionNo. 8 of 50 states
Farms, 2022
42,8178,128,136 acres of farmland
Crops sold, 2022
$4.7 billion25% of farm sales
No. 1 in the US
1 itemof 71 tracked here
Value of crops and livestock sold by county, 2022 Census of Agriculture
Under $4.4M$4.4M to $18M$18M to $66M$66M to $220M$220M to $660M$660M+
Withheld to protect individual farms
Tap or hover a county to see its numbers.

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2022 Census of Agriculture. Hatched counties are withheld by NASS to protect individual farms.

What does North Carolina grow the most of?

Crops ranked by acres harvested (or bearing acres for orchards) in the 2022 Census of Agriculture.

  1. 1SoybeansNo. 17 in the US1,707,530 acres
  2. 2CornNo. 20 in the US822,459 acres
  3. 3HayNo. 34 in the US576,380 acres
  4. 4WheatNo. 22 in the US430,720 acres
  5. 5PeanutsNo. 5 in the US119,427 acres
  6. 6Sweet potatoesNo. 1 in the US87,126 acres
  7. 7Potatoes13,210 acres
  8. 8Sorghum10,996 acres
  9. 9BarleyNo. 13 in the US10,203 acres
  10. 10OatsNo. 16 in the US9,911 acres

Where does North Carolina rank nationally?

Every item where North Carolina is in the top 10 states. Ranks use NASS's latest annual estimate where it covers the main producing states, and the 2022 Census otherwise.

North Carolina's top-10 national rankings
ItemUS rankShareAmountSource
Sweet potatoesNo. 158%†1.9 billion poundsNASS, 2025
TurkeysNo. 214%28 million turkeysNASS, 2025
Collard greensNo. 312%1,376 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
CucumbersNo. 311%†162 million poundsNASS, 2025
HogsNo. 311%7.9 million hogsNASS, 2025
ChickensNo. 4*10%985 million broiler chickensNASS, 2025
StrawberriesNo. 41%1,012 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
WatermelonNo. 510%†403 million poundsNASS, 2025
PeanutsNo. 57%525 million poundsNASS, 2025
BlueberriesNo. 67%†50.6 million poundsNASS, 2025
BlackberriesNo. 64%771 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
Bell peppersNo. 64%†41 million poundsNASS, 2025
BroccoliNo. 6*under 1%1,099 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
SquashNo. 75%3,327 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
PumpkinsNo. 7*4%†56.5 million poundsNASS, 2025
KaleNo. 73%469 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
CantaloupeNo. 72%1,006 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
CabbageNo. 95%†99.4 million poundsNASS, 2025
Chile peppersNo. 92%496 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
HoneydewNo. 9*under 1%32 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
EggsNo. 10*4%3.8 billion eggsNASS, 2025
TomatoesNo. 10under 1%2,146 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
FigsNo. 10under 1%32 acres2022 Census of Agriculture
* Rank among states with published figures; a withheld state could rank higher. † Share of the states NASS surveys for that item, not of every state.

What livestock does North Carolina raise?

Animals on farms at the end of 2022 (broiler chickens: head sold during 2022), from the Census of Agriculture.

North Carolina livestock and poultry, 2022 Census of Agriculture
AnimalHeadShare of USMeasure
Broiler chickens972,408,18611%head sold
Turkeys15,746,88916%head on farms
Laying hens14,535,5434%head on farms
Hogs8,191,75111%head on farms
Cattle718,743under 1%head on farms
Goats42,7852%head on farms
Milk cows39,528under 1%head on farms
Sheep36,578under 1%head on farms

Which North Carolina counties farm the most?

Counties ranked by the value of crops and livestock sold in 2022. Counties with enough published data have their own page.

Top 20 North Carolina counties by farm sales, 2022 Census of Agriculture
CountyFarm salesTop crop by acresFarms
Sampson County$2.2 billionSoybeans882
Duplin County$2 billionSoybeans949
Wayne County$798 millionSoybeans415
Robeson County$638 millionSoybeans732
Bladen County$616 millionCorn423
Union County$592 millionSoybeans882
Anson County$491 millionSoybeans421
Wilkes County$459 millionHay871
Randolph County$451 millionHay1,238
Bertie County$417 millionSoybeans288
Lenoir County$389 millionSoybeans352
Greene County$375 millionSoybeans210
Pitt County$367 millionSoybeans367
Richmond County$354 millionHay261
Chatham County$340 millionHay1,076
Surry County$337 millionHay933
Alexander County$307 millionHay535
Edgecombe County$304 millionSoybeans243
Johnston County$300 millionSoybeans964
Jones County$286 millionSoybeans126
Show all 100 counties
North Carolina counties ranked 21 to 100 by farm sales, 2022
CountyFarm salesTop crop by acresFarms
Onslow County$251 millionSoybeans342
Harnett County$251 millionSoybeans563
Pender County$246 millionSoybeans354
Wilson County$239 millionSoybeans207
Moore County$238 millionHay802
Montgomery County$231 millionHay210
Columbus County$222 millionSoybeans447
Cleveland County$215 millionHay872
Yadkin County$211 millionSoybeans754
Scotland County$191 millionSoybeans121
Halifax County$189 millionSoybeans220
Nash County$185 millionSoybeans375
Iredell County$171 millionHay894
Hyde County$170 millionSoybeans123
Northampton County$170 millionSoybeans257
Hoke County$151 millionSoybeans185
Cumberland County$146 millionSoybeans327
Beaufort County$139 millionSoybeans259
Gates County$137 millionSoybeans122
Martin County$107 millionSoybeans286
Henderson County$103 millionApples520
Perquimans County$103 millionSoybeans137
Hertford County$102 millionSoybeans97
Lincoln County$102 millionHay552
Rowan County$96.6 millionSoybeans801
Rutherford County$95.9 millionHay614
Catawba County$94 millionHay608
Craven County$92.5 millionSoybeans292
Stanly County$91.1 millionSoybeans649
Chowan County$86.8 millionSoybeans134
Pasquotank County$81.7 millionSoybeans133
Ashe County$73.4 millionHay760
Davidson County$71.5 millionHay847
Washington County$71.3 millionSoybeans110
Franklin County$69.4 millionSoybeans518
Guilford County$68.2 millionHay775
Cabarrus County$67.5 millionHay630
Camden County$64.6 millionSoybeans76
Wake County$62.1 millionSoybeans664
Tyrrell County$61.1 millionSoybeans73
Lee County$60.1 millionSoybeans264
Caldwell County$56.7 millionHay430
Alleghany County$53.5 millionHay435
Stokes County$52.5 millionHay726
Brunswick County$51.1 millionSoybeans238
Carteret County$48.6 millionHay94
Warren County$48.6 millionSoybeans237
Person County$46.5 millionSoybeans364
Alamance County$46 millionHay724
Caswell County$35.7 millionHay412
Buncombe County$35.5 millionHay1,074
Orange County$32.4 millionHay687
Pamlico County$31.8 millionSoybeans81
Davie County$30.6 millionSoybeans594
Currituck County$29.6 millionSoybeans87
Rockingham County$28.3 millionHay769
Granville County$28.3 millionHay483
Gaston County$26.9 millionHay412
Avery County$25.9 millionHay335
Jackson County$24.9 millionHay236
Haywood County$18.7 millionHay567
Cherokee County$18.5 millionHay246
McDowell County$17.4 millionHay298
Forsyth County$14.7 millionSoybeans482
Watauga County$13.2 millionHay400
Vance County$12.9 millionSoybeans170
Durham County$11.2 millionHay212
Transylvania County$9.5 millionHay142
Polk County$6.8 millionHay274
Macon County$6.7 millionHay346
Yancey County$5.4 millionHay288
Madison County$5.1 millionHay535
Mitchell County$3.6 millionHay263
Clay County$3.6 millionHay178
New Hanover County$2.6 millionCorn60
Swain County$1.3 millionHay70
Graham County$1.1 millionHay70
Dare County$525,000Tomatoes18
Burke CountyWithheldHay473
Mecklenburg CountyWithheldHay165

North Carolina's signature crops

Items where North Carolina has the largest share of the national total.

About this data

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service: 2022 Census of Agriculture (farm sales, farms, acreage, livestock and all county figures) and NASS annual estimates (latest final year) for national rankings where they cover the main producing states. Figures NASS withholds to protect individual farms are marked withheld. Data processed 2026-11-06. Methodology.