Farm operations
248
Avg 338 ac / farm
2022 USDA Census GA · FIPS 13317 Top quartile by state sales LIGHT PASTURE-LED
Wilkes County, Georgia - Farm Data
Agricultural and commodity intelligence for Wilkes County. Ranked #32 of 159 counties in Georgia.
83,917 acres of agricultural land
- Cropland
- 21.5% 18,056 acres
- Other land
- 78.5% 65,861 acres
USDA NASS · 2022 Census of Agriculture
Wilkes County received $3.81 in Census government payments per agricultural acre, 0.4× the Georgia county median of $9.62.
According to the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture.
- $3.81
- government payments per agricultural acre
- $9.62
- Georgia county median per acre
- 0.40×
- Georgia median per acre
Payments per acre use the same NASS county table for receipts and acreage. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series.
According to the 2022 USDA NASS Census of Agriculture, Wilkes County, Georgia is a PASTURE-LED county with federal farm payments per acre that stamp LIGHT; commodity sales sit above state median and it shows low federal dependence.
Commodity sales
$123.9M
2.5× state median -- Above state median
Federal payments
$320K
0.3% of sales -- Low federal dependence
Net farm income
$51.7M
2022 cash income -- Well above-typical net income
C
Farm economy grade: C -- Wilkes County's net farm income sits at the 69th percentile among 3,046 NASS-reporting counties nationally (2022 Census). Percentile-benchmarked, not a same-state comparison like the tier label above.
What the Wilkes County Farm Data Shows
Wilkes County, Georgia reads as a PASTURE-LED county with LIGHT federal payment intensity. In the NASS Census vocabulary this portal uses, cropland is under 25% of agricultural land, a mix where livestock forage and disaster titles (LFP/ELAP) usually outweigh row-crop commodity programs; payments per agricultural acre fall in the second-lowest national quintile, $3.41 to $6.98 an acre, which is light federal support for the land base.
The state comparisons on this page use the 156 of 159 Georgia counties with published commodity sales (3 withheld by NASS to protect respondents are left out, not counted as zero), averaging the two central values when the count is even. Payments per acre use the 132 counties that report both receipts and acreage, and net-income peers are the 135 that reported a profit.
Pair the payment peers below before treating any single county as representative of Georgia.
Read with Wilkes County
Nearest NASS federal-payment peers and $/acre poles for Wilkes (LIGHT · PASTURE-LED), replacing the old fixed Related and same-state alphabetical strip.
LIGHT PASTURE-LED
Blount County, TN · TRACE
$320K federal receipts is higher by - than Wilkes; land stamp MIXED vs PASTURE-LED.
Appomattox County, VA · LIGHT
$320K federal receipts is higher by - than Wilkes; land stamp MIXED vs PASTURE-LED.
ST Louis County, MO · HEAVY
$319K federal receipts is lower by $1K than Wilkes; land stamp CROP-LED vs PASTURE-LED.
Warren County, PA · LIGHT
$319K federal receipts is lower by $1K than Wilkes; land stamp MIXED vs PASTURE-LED.
Garrett County (LIGHT $/acre pole)
Garrett sits near Wilkes on payments-per-acre ($3.82) while total receipts differ.
Warren County (LIGHT $/acre pole)
Warren sits near Wilkes on payments-per-acre ($3.80) while total receipts differ.
Georgia ERS state roll-up
Wilkes stamps LIGHT · PASTURE-LED inside Georgia's NASS county table, open the state ERS payment stack next.
Census payments leaderboard
Open the national ranking of U.S. counties by NASS federal farm program payments to see the counties around Wilkes under the LIGHT intensity band.
What to do with this
Three ways to keep going from Wilkes County, Georgia:
- See how Georgia compares nationally on ERS farm payments and income. Georgia state page
- Browse the full county table to compare payment intensity across the country. All counties
- Understand what actually drives county-level farm payments. Read the guide
County figures (2022 NASS Census of Agriculture) are a separate population from USDA ERS state and national payment series and must not be summed together.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many farms are in Wilkes County, Georgia?
Wilkes County, Georgia has 248 farms (2022 USDA Census). Average farm size 338 acres; land stamp PASTURE-LED.
What is the total agricultural production value of Wilkes County?
Wilkes County's total commodity sales are $123.9M (2022 Census of Agriculture), ranking #32 among 159 counties in Georgia.
How much federal farm assistance does Wilkes County receive?
Wilkes County received $320K in federal government farm program receipts (2022), stamping LIGHT on NASS payments-per-acre ($3.81/acre) with a PASTURE-LED land mix.
What is the net farm income in Wilkes County?
Net cash farm income for operations in Wilkes County is $51.7M (2022 Census of Agriculture).
State Overview
Georgia
159 counties · View state farm data
Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service 2022 Census of Agriculture · 2022
Dollar values reflect calendar year 2022 farm operations data.
PlainFarmData is an independent data portal, not affiliated with USDA, FSA, or any government agency. For official program eligibility or application guidance, contact your local USDA Farm Service Agency office.
Intensity stamp LIGHT · land stamp PASTURE-LED (NASS payments-per-acre / cropland share bands).
NASS withholds commodity sales for 3 Georgia counties with too few farm operations to publish without identifying individual producers. Those counties are excluded from the peer median on this page rather than counted as zero sales.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified. Verify with USDA NASS Census of Agriculture →
County farm figures on this page are rendered from the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture, no number is typed in by an editor. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.