Farm Census

Palm Beach County, Florida

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

1,368 farms460,575 acres in farms$1.25 billion in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Palm Beach County leads the country in sugarcane, ranks second for sales of hay and other crops, seventh for vegetables and eighth for sales of horses and mules and sales of nursery and greenhouse crops.

Within Florida, no other county with a published figure sells more farm products.

Vegetables and melons: 37.7%Vegetables and melons37.7%Hay and other crops: 37.4%Hay and other crops37.4%Nursery and greenhouse: 19.9%Nursery and greenhouse19.9%Horses and mules: 2.0%2.0%Grains and oilseeds: 1.8%1.8%Other animals: 0.5%0.5%Fruit and nuts: 0.3%Cattle and calves: 0.2%Aquaculture: 0.2%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Vegetables and melons: 37.7%37.7%Hay and other crops: 37.4%Hay and other crops37.4%Nursery and greenhouse: 19.9%Nursery and greenhouse19.9%Horses and mules: 2.0%2.0%Grains and oilseeds: 1.8%1.8%Other animals: 0.5%Fruit and nuts: 0.3%Cattle and calves: 0.2%Aquaculture: 0.2%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: milk and hogs and pigs.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$471 million1st of 52
Hay and other crops$468 million1st of 49
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$249 million3rd of 55
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$24.5 million2nd of 50
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$22.1 million1st of 37
Other animals and animal products$6.4 million1st of 47
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$4.1 million24th of 56
Cattle and calves$2.7 million38th of 56
Aquaculture$2.4 million12th of 27
Poultry and eggs$267,00017th of 46
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$191,00015th of 52

What the fields held

Palm Beach County harvested 359,538 acres of cropland in 2022, first of 62 counties in Florida. Sugarcane covered acreage equal to 66% of that, vegetables 23%.

CropAcresShare of US
Sugarcane236,65925.9%
Vegetables82,7581.9%
of which potatoes2under 0.1%
Rice19,9370.87%
Peanuts6,4770.45%
Orchard land1,341under 0.1%
of which citrus5000.06%
Hay and haylage420under 0.1%
Soybeans25under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: corn for grain, corn for silage, apples, grapes and berries.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms36.6%

Palm Beach County ranks 18th of 62 counties in Florida on this measure.

  • 401,859 acres of cropland, 87% of farmland
  • 22,698 acres of pastureland, 5% of farmland
  • 6,296 acres of woodland, 1% of farmland
  • 329,593 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in Palm Beach County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 5 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 337 acres, 14th-largest of 61 in Florida. The most common size class is 1–9 acres, with 61.3% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 4.3% of the total.

1–961%10–4923%50–1796%180–4994%500–9991%1,000–1,9992%2,000+2%
Palm Beach County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Horses and ponies7,7610.32%
Goats1,9750.08%
Beef cows11,315under 0.1%
Cattle and calves14,545under 0.1%
Sheep and lambs623under 0.1%
Laying hens5,431under 0.1%
Milk cows30under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs183under 0.1%
Turkeys106under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 20221,259under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Palm Beach County's 1,368 farms are made by 2,494 producers. Their average age is 57.0, 2.5 years below the Florida average. Women are 41.5% of them.

Under 358%35–4414%45–5416%55–6429%65–7422%75+10%
Palm Beach County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,298+5.4%
Land in farms, acres487,845−5.6%
Average farm size, acres376−10.4%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$902 million+38.7%
Vegetables, acres63,693+29.9%
Horses and ponies, head6,136+26.5%
Goats, head1,371+44.1%
Citrus, acres656−23.8%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Palm Beach County accounts for 12.2% of farm sales in Florida and 3.1% of the farms in Florida. Rank Florida counties for sugarcane.

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