Farm operations
614
Avg 104 ac / farm
2022 USDA Census NC · FIPS 37161 Upper-middle by state sales TRACE MIXED
Rutherford County, North Carolina - Farm Data
Agricultural and commodity intelligence for Rutherford County. Ranked #46 of 100 counties in North Carolina.
63,632 acres of agricultural land
- Cropland
- 33.2% 21,145 acres
- Other land
- 66.8% 42,487 acres
USDA NASS · 2022 Census of Agriculture
Rutherford County received $1.12 in Census government payments per agricultural acre, 0.1× the North Carolina county median of $12.60.
According to the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture.
- $1.12
- government payments per agricultural acre
- $12.60
- North Carolina county median per acre
- 0.09×
- North Carolina 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, Rutherford County, North Carolina is a MIXED county with federal farm payments per acre that stamp TRACE; commodity sales sit near state median and it shows low federal dependence.
Commodity sales
$95.9M
1.1× state median -- Near state median
Federal payments
$71K
0.1% of sales -- Low federal dependence
Net farm income
$34.3M
2022 cash income -- Typical net income
C
Farm economy grade: C -- Rutherford County's net farm income sits at the 60th percentile among 3,046 NASS-reporting counties nationally (2022 Census). Percentile-benchmarked, not a same-state comparison like the tier label above.
What the Rutherford County Farm Data Shows
Rutherford County, North Carolina reads as a MIXED county with TRACE federal payment intensity. In the NASS Census vocabulary this portal uses, cropland is 25% to 50% of agricultural land with the balance in pasture, range, woodland or farmsteads, so row-crop and livestock-side programs are both in play; payments per agricultural acre fall in the lowest national quintile, under $3.41 an acre, so program receipts are a marginal line beside market revenue.
The state comparisons on this page use the 98 of 100 North Carolina counties with published commodity sales (2 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 95 counties that report both receipts and acreage, and net-income peers are the 92 that reported a profit.
Pair the payment peers below before treating any single county as representative of North Carolina.
Read with Rutherford County
Nearest NASS federal-payment peers and $/acre poles for Rutherford (TRACE · MIXED), replacing the old fixed Related and same-state alphabetical strip.
TRACE MIXED
Troup County, GA · TRACE
$71K federal receipts is higher by - than Rutherford; land stamp PASTURE-LED vs MIXED.
Jackson County, LA · TRACE
$71K federal receipts is higher by - than Rutherford; land stamp MIXED vs MIXED.
Emmet County, MI · TRACE
$71K federal receipts is higher by - than Rutherford; land stamp MIXED vs MIXED.
Gulf County, FL · UNPUB
$70K federal receipts is lower by $1K than Rutherford; land stamp MIXED vs MIXED.
Otsego County (TRACE $/acre pole)
Otsego sits near Rutherford on payments-per-acre ($1.11) while total receipts differ.
Whitley County (TRACE $/acre pole)
Whitley sits near Rutherford on payments-per-acre ($1.13) while total receipts differ.
North Carolina ERS state roll-up
Rutherford stamps TRACE · MIXED inside North Carolina'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 Rutherford under the TRACE intensity band.
What to do with this
From Rutherford County, North Carolina, these three pages are the natural next reads:
- See how North Carolina compares nationally on ERS farm payments and income. North Carolina 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 Rutherford County, North Carolina?
Rutherford County, North Carolina has 614 farms (2022 USDA Census). Average farm size 104 acres; land stamp MIXED.
What is the total agricultural production value of Rutherford County?
Rutherford County's total commodity sales are $95.9M (2022 Census of Agriculture), ranking #46 among 100 counties in North Carolina.
How much federal farm assistance does Rutherford County receive?
Rutherford County received $71K in federal government farm program receipts (2022), stamping TRACE on NASS payments-per-acre ($1.12/acre) with a MIXED land mix.
What is the net farm income in Rutherford County?
Net cash farm income for operations in Rutherford County is $34.3M (2022 Census of Agriculture).
State Overview
North Carolina
100 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 TRACE · land stamp MIXED (NASS payments-per-acre / cropland share bands).
NASS withholds commodity sales for 2 North Carolina 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.