Farm Census

Rio Grande County, Colorado

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

318 farms174,641 acres in farms$151 million in farm sales

No other county in Colorado with a published figure has more barley or vegetables than Rio Grande County.

Its largest product group with a published figure, vegetables and melons, makes up 71.4% of farm sales, against 5.2% across Colorado.

Vegetables and melons: 71.4%Vegetables and melons71.4%Hay and other crops: 11.8%Hay and other crops11.8%Grains and oilseeds: 10.2%Grains and oilseeds10.2%Cattle and calves: 4.9%4.9%Withheld groups: 0.6%Sheep and goats: 0.6%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.2%Other animals: 0.2%Horses and mules: 0.1%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%Vegetables and melons: 71.4%Vegetables and melons71.4%Hay and other crops: 11.8%11.8%Grains and oilseeds: 10.2%10.2%Cattle and calves: 4.9%4.9%Withheld groups: 0.6%Sheep and goats: 0.6%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.2%Other animals: 0.2%Horses and mules: 0.1%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: hogs and pigs and aquaculture products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$108 million1st of 27
Hay and other crops$17.8 million8th of 44
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$15.4 million16th of 31
Cattle and calves$7.4 million31st of 50
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$846,00012th of 46
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$361,00025th of 29
Other animals and animal products$289,00015th of 27
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$166,00030th of 43
Poultry and eggs$12,00036th of 41

What the fields held

Rio Grande County harvested 76,000 acres of cropland in 2022, 13th of 54 counties in Colorado. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 54% of that, vegetables 24%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage41,0230.08%
Vegetables18,4220.43%
Barley11,6750.48%
Canola1,6390.08%
Wheat1,323under 0.1%
Oats120under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: corn for grain, grain sorghum, dry edible beans, potatoes, orchard land, grapes and berries.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms29.9%

Rio Grande County ranks 31st of 59 counties in Colorado on this measure.

  • 99,839 acres of cropland, 57% of farmland
  • 65,373 acres of pastureland, 37% of farmland
  • 2,169 acres of woodland, 1% of farmland
  • 83,263 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Rio Grande County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 140 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 549 acres, 34th-largest of 54 in Colorado. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 32.4% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 16.0% of the total.

1–96%10–4920%50–17932%180–49914%500–99911%1,000–1,99910%2,000+6%
Rio Grande County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Sheep and lambs5,0650.10%
Horses and ponies842under 0.1%
Beef cows7,180under 0.1%
Goats578under 0.1%
Cattle and calves10,733under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs224under 0.1%
Laying hens330under 0.1%
Milk cows4under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Rio Grande County's 318 farms are made by 654 producers. Their average age is 55.0, 3.3 years below the Colorado average. Women are 37.6% of them.

Under 3515%35–4415%45–5416%55–6421%65–7424%75+10%
Rio Grande County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms321−0.9%
Land in farms, acres177,452−1.6%
Average farm size, acres553−0.7%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$99.0 million+52.3%
Barley, acres18,567−37.1%
Vegetables, acres17,732+3.9%
Sheep and lambs, head12,518−59.5%
Canola, acres994+64.9%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Rio Grande County accounts for 1.6% of farm sales in Colorado and 0.9% of the farms in Colorado. Rank Colorado counties for barley.

Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.