CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia lost two hundred farms in the period from 2023 to 2024.
On February 14th, the United States Department of Agriculture released its “2024 Farm Numbers and Land in Farms” report.
According to the report, there were 22,600 farms in 2024, down 200 from the previous year.
The amount of farmland was unchanged at 3.50 million acres, according to the report.
The average farm size in the Mountain State at the time of the report was 155 acres, up an acre from the previous year.
Nationwide, the USDA reports “a significant loss of farms in 2024.”
–The number of farms in the United States for 2024 is estimated at 1,880,000, down 14,950 farms from 2023.
— Total land in farms, at 876,460,000 acres, decreased 2,100,000 acres from 2023.
The report shed more light on the scale of farming in the Mountain State:
In West Virginia, farms in the $1,000 – $9,999 economic sales class totaled 15,400 in 2024, down 300 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 1.45 million acres, down 50,000 acres from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 94 acres, down 2 acres from 2023.
West Virginia farms in the $10,000 – $99,999 economic sales class totaled 6,300 in 2024, up 100 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 1.45 million acres, up 50,000 acres from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 230 acres, up 4 acres from 2023.
West Virginia farms in the $100,000 – $249,999 economic sales class totaled 400 in 2024, up 20 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 210,000 acres, up 10,000 acres from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 525 acres, down 1 acre from 2023.
West Virginia farms in the $250,000 – $499,999 economic sales class totaled 130 in 2024, down 20 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 100,000 acres, unchanged from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 769 acres, up 102 acres from 2023.
West Virginia farms in the $500,000 – $999,999 economic sales class totaled 160 in 2024, up 10 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 100,000 acres, unchanged from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 625 acres, down 42 acres from 2023.
West Virginia farms in the $1,000,000 or more economic sales class totaled 210 in 2024, down 10 farms from 2023. Land in farms for this sales class totaled 190,000 acres, down 10,000 acres from 2023. The average farm size for this sales class was 905 acres, down 4 acres from 2023.
Nationwide, the number of farms decreased in all sales classes except the $1,000,000 or more sales class. In 2024, 48.1 percent of all farms had less than $10,000 in sales and 78.9 percent of all farms had less than $100,000 in sales. In 2024, 9.8 percent of all farms had sales of $500,000 or more.
The total land in farms across the United States stood at 876,460,000 acres at the time of the report, representing a decrease of 2,100,000 acres from 2023.
The biggest change for 2024 is that producers in Sales Class $1,000,000 or more operated 1,490,000 more acres than in 2023. In 2024, 25.9 percent of all farmland was operated by farms with less than $100,000 in sales, while 50 percent of all farmland was operated by farms with sales of $500,000 or more. The average farm size nationwide for 2024 was 466 acres, up from 464 acres the previous year.
