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Direct Farm Sales of Food
ACH17-27/April 2022
Results from the 2020 Local Food Marketing Practices Survey
Highlights
United States Department of Agriculture
National Agricultural Statistics Service
www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus
Number and Location
California, with $1.4 billion in direct
farm sales, accounted for 16% of the U.S.
total. At the regional level, the 11-state
northeastern region had the largest
share of direct sales with $2.5 billion,
which accounted for 28% of the U.S.
total. Four of the top 10 states are in the
northeastern region.
Top States in Direct Farm Sales ($ million)
California 1,432
Pennsylvania 600
New York 584
Michigan 555
Maine 342
Washington 323
Texas 273
Oregon 255
Massachusetts 254
Florida 247
California also led the country in the
number of farms selling food directly
with 14,308 farms, which accounted
for 10% of the U.S. total. Texas was the
only other state with more than 10,000
farms selling directly. Regionally, the
southwest and northeast had the most
farms engaged in direct sales of food
(25,644 and 26,707 farms, respectively).
In 2020, farmers produced and sold $9 billion of local edible food commodities
directly to consumers, retailers, institutions, and intermediaries. Direct farm
sales of food increased by 3% from 2015. The number of operations selling
locally produced food decreased by 12%. Intermediaries and institutions
accounted for 46% percent of direct food sales while direct-to-consumer sales
accounted for 33%. Direct farm sales included both fresh foods and processed
or value-added products such as bottled milk, cheese, meat, wine, and jams.
147,307
farms
$9 billion
local food sales
$4.1 billion
sold through institutions
and intermediate markets
Direct Farm Sales of Food by Regional Share, 2020
What is local?
A locally or regionally produced agricultural food product that is transported less
than 400 miles or within the state it is produced.
Farms sell directly to:
Consumers - Includes sales through farmers markets, onsite farm stores, roadside
stands, Community Supported Agriculture arrangements, online sales, pick-your-own
operations, mobile markets, and other means.
Retailers - Includes supermarkets, supercenters, restaurants, caterers, independent
grocery stores, and food cooperatives.
Institutions - Includes schools, colleges, universities, and hospitals.
Intermediate markets - Includes intermediary businesses such as wholesalers,
distributors, processors and more.
U.S. Total = $9 billion
Direct-to-Consumer Sales
Seventy-seven percent of farms with direct sales sold directly to consumers. Of
the $2.9 billion in direct-to-consumer sales, on-farm stores and farmers markets
accounted for $1.7 billion (59%).
Among farms selling directly to consumers, 42% sold fresh food products while
75% sold processed or value-added products.
Direct-to-Consumer Sales by Marketing Practice, 2020 ($ million)
225
Community Supported Ag
252
Roadside Stand Away From Farm
312
Online Market
415
Other (pick-your-own, etc.)
514
Farmers Market
1,231
On-Farm Store or Stand
SNAPSHOT
Producers with Direct Sales
of Food, 2020
Number=299,238*
Direct Sales All U.S.
(Census 2017)
(percent)
Sex
Male 57 64
Female 43 36
Age
<35 11 8
35-64 56 58
65+ 33 34
Primary Occupation
Farming 49 42
Other 51 58
With military service 9 11
Hispanic 4 3
Race
American Indian/Alaska Native 1.3 2.3
Asian 1.9 0.7
Black/African American 1.2 1.4
Native Hawaiian/Pacic Isl 0.6 0.2
White 96.2 96.2
*Data collected for up to four producers per farm, may report more
than one race per producer.
Source: USDA NASS, 2020 Local Food Marketing Practices Survey. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Direct Farm Sales of Food by Type of Buyer, 2020 and 2015
2020 Sales*
($ billion)
2015 Sales
($ billion)
Consumer 2.9 3.0
Retailer 1.9 2.3
Institutions and Local Intermediary Businesses 4.1 3.4
Total Direct Farm Sales 9.0 8.7
*May not add to total due to rounding.
About the Survey
The 2020 Local Food Marketing Practices Survey
was designed to collect data related to the
marketing of foods directly from farm producers
to consumers or retailers who then sell directly
to consumers. The primary purpose of the Local
Food Marketing Practices Survey was to produce
statistics on the number of farms that market
food directly, the value of these direct sales, and
the marketing practices used in conjunction
with direct sales. The survey was administered in
all 50 states.
The 2020 data as well as results of previous NASS
Local Food surveys are available in the NASS
Quick Stats database at
www.quickstats.nass.usda.gov, or at
www.nass.usda.gov/go/local-food.
52%
The share of direct-to-consumer sales that were
fresh food products.
Other Direct Sales
There were 40,675 farms selling food to institutions and intermediary
businesses with $4.1 billion in direct sales. Fresh commodities accounted for
56% of the total sales. Of the 40,675 farms, 19,655 (48%) sold fresh commodities,
while 22,533 (55%) sold processed or value-added commodities. Fewer farms
(24,137) sold directly to retailers than to individual consumers, institutions, or
intermediaries. Sixty-two percent of sales to retailers such as grocery stores and
restaurants were fresh foods.
The majority (57%) of farms marketing food directly were located in
metropolitan counties. These farms accounted for 62% of all direct food sales.
Approximately 78% of farms selling food directly sold all of their directly-
marketed food within a 100-mile radius of the farm.
About 300,000 individuals were involved
in making decisions for the farms that sold
food directly in 2020. Producers of farms that
sold local food directly were more likely than
all U.S. farms to be female and age 34 or
younger.
