A Look at Farming in Clackamas County from the Census of Agriculture
September 25, 2024The Census of Agriculture is conducted every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agriculture Statistics Services (NASS). The Census of Agriculture is the leading source of uniform and comprehensive agricultural data for every State and county in the United States and is used by numerous entities such as government, agriculture organizations, businesses, and universities. Since 1975, the Census of Agriculture has defined a farm as “any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were sold or would normally be sold during the calendar year”.
The 2022 Census of Agriculture is actually the 30th Federal census of agriculture beginning back in 1840 when America's population was just over 17 million and about 69% of the population were farmers. According to the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Oregon Farm Bureau’s 2022 findings, farm and ranch families now comprise less than 2% of the population in the United States and only 1% of the population in Oregon.
Farms and Farm Labor in Clackamas County
In 2022, Oregon had a total of 35,547 farms spread across 15.3 million acres in the state. Nearly 12% of these farms were located in Clackamas County which numbered 4,156 farms in 2022 – down from 4,297 farms in 2017.
Nearly 90% of farms (3,721) in Clackamas County were operated by farmers operating on only land they owned during 2022. A much smaller number of farms (312) were operated by part owners who both operated the land they owned and also worked land they rented from others. The smallest number of farms were operated by tenants who rented land from other landowners (123).
The number of hired farm workers in the county totaled 7,490 in 2022 down from 8,223 in 2017. Migrant farm workers made up 13.8 % of these farm workers during 2022 and 12.6% in 2017. Migrant farm workers are generally defined as seasonal farmworkers who have to travel to do the farm work and are unable to return to their permanent residence within the same day.
Size of Farms
In 2022, the average size of a farm in Clackamas County was 38 acres and over four-fifths or 3,585 farms were under 50 acres. The largest farms, with 500 acres or more, totaled 29 and these farms made up only 0.7% of all farms in the county.
Farming Operations by Industry Commodity
Agricultural commodities are defined as crops and livestock that are raised and harvested to provide food and sometimes fuel and are often traded globally. During 2022 in Clackamas County, the two largest types of farming operations (by industry) were in the livestock, poultry, and their products industry (1,793) and other crops and hay (823). The county also had significant numbers of farmers producing fruit tree nuts, and berries (538) and nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, and sod (504). A smaller number of farms produced cultivated Christmas trees and rotation woody crops (375); vegetables, melons, potatoes, and sweet potatoes (249); and grains, oilseeds, dry beans, and dry peas (17).
Organic Certified Farming. Certified organic farming is a production method of farming that excludes the use of irradiation, sewage sludge, synthetic fertilizers, synthetic pesticides, and genetic engineering. These specific sets of requirements must be verified before a farmer can receive USDA organic certification. In 2022, Oregon had a total of 519 certified organic farms – up from 483 in 2017. Clackamas County had the fourth highest number of organic farms in Oregon with 40 organic farms producing $14.2 million in product sales.
Market Value of Agricultural Products Sold
The market value of agricultural products is the gross market value of products sold before taxes and production expenses in current dollars. This value is reported on a regular basis to provide real-time information for planning by producers, shippers, distributors, and processors in the agricultural industry. Out of all 36 counties in the state, Clackamas ranked fifth highest in total market value of agricultural products sold in 2022. The county ranked first in Christmas trees and short rotation crops and second highest in nursery, greenhouse, floriculture and sod.
The current dollar market value of all agricultural products sold in Oregon during 2022 totaled $6.8 billion – up from $5.0 billion in 2017. In Clackamas County, the market value of all agricultural products totaled $510.3 million in 2022 – up from $376.3 million in 2017. Two agricultural industries in the county produced over two-thirds of the total value of agricultural products sold during 2022. They included nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, and sod industry at $246.1 million (48.2%) and livestock, poultry, and their products industry at $109.7 million (21.5%).
Farm Producer Demographics
The term “producer” is defined by the 2022 Census of Agriculture as any person who is involved in making decisions for the farm operation. These decisions may include decisions about planting, harvesting, livestock management, and marketing. A producer may be the owner, a member of the owner’s household, a hired manager, a tenant, a renter, or a sharecropper.
In 2022, Clackamas County had the highest number of total producers of all counties in Oregon at 8,177. The gender mix of producers was 54.7% male and 45.3% female. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of farm producers were 55 years or older in 2022 and the average age was 58 years. The county’s younger and future generation, those under 25 to 34 years, made up only 6.4% of all producers in 2022 – relatively unchanged from 6.8% in 2017.
Where to Find Census of Agriculture Publications and More
If you would like to access the full reports and detailed information for the Census of Agriculture surveys, you can find more at: USDA Census of Agriculture.
Additional sources for Oregon’s farming and agriculture industry:
- Oregon Department of Agriculture is a USDA-accredited certifying agent for organic crop production and organic handling/processing.
- Oregon State University, Extension Service partners with local communities to provide trusted expertise and science-based knowledge to address critical issues and help every Oregonian thrive.