Organic Agriculture in New York State

Abstract

This report describes the scale and scope of organic agricultural production in New York State in 2008. The most current data available generated by the 2008 U.S. Organic Production Survey conducted by National Agricultural Statistics Service, (NASS-USDA) are summarized for New York. Production data are broken down into the following types of farm output: livestock and poultry; field crops; vegetables, potatoes and melons; fruit and tree nuts; floriculture and bedding crops; berries; Christmas trees and maple syrup. In addition to information on production, sales and marketing data are presented including: product sales, organic sales as a percentage of all farm products sold, value-added sales, marketing contracts, percent of household income from sales, and various marketing practices. The top twelve organic farm products marketed were: milk and dairy cattle; vegetables, potatoes and melons; hay & haylage; soybeans; fruit and nuts; winter wheat; maple syrup; berries; oats; floriculture and bedding; and chicken eggs. The report summarizes responses on primary challenges and future production intentions for those New York State organic producers who participated in the survey.