Farmers' markets concentrated in metro counties

According to USDA’s National Farmers’ Market Directory, 7,828 farmers’ markets were operating in the United States in August 2012. Of the 3,143 U.S. counties, 33 percent had no farmer’s markets, 29 percent had 1 market, 21 percent had 2 or 3 markets, 12 percent had 4 to 10 markets, and 5 percent had more than 10 farmers’ markets. The 143 counties with more than 10 farmers’ markets account for almost 40 percent of the Nation’s farmers’ markets. All but 10 are metro-designated counties where higher population concentrations provide a larger customer base. Half of these 143 counties are located in 6 States—California, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. In 2011, 129 U.S. counties had more than 10 farmers’ markets. This chart appears in the December issue of ERS’s Amber Waves magazine.

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