Farm Census

Hardy County, West Virginia

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

500 farms136,877 acres in farms$269 million in farm sales

No other county in West Virginia with a published figure has more corn for silage, laying hens, broilers sold or turkeys, or sells more farm products than Hardy County.

Its largest product group, poultry and eggs, makes up 92.2% of farm sales, against 52.4% across West Virginia.

Poultry and eggs: 92.2%Poultry and eggs92.2%Cattle and calves: 3.7%3.7%Grains and oilseeds: 3.1%3.1%Hay and other crops: 0.7%0.7%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: 0.1%Vegetables and melons: 0.1%Sheep and goats: 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%Poultry and eggs: 92.2%Poultry and eggs92.2%Cattle and calves: 3.7%3.7%Grains and oilseeds: 3.1%3.1%Hay and other crops: 0.7%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: 0.1%Vegetables and melons: 0.1%Sheep and goats: 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Poultry and eggs$249 million1st of 44
Cattle and calves$9.9 million4th of 50
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$8.4 million2nd of 33
Hay and other crops$1.8 million13th of 49
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$229,00016th of 33
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$194,00028th of 41
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$170,00025th of 40
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$136,00012th of 44
Hogs and pigs$49,00010th of 31
Other animals and animal products$35,00018th of 40
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$9,00031st of 32
Christmas trees and short-rotation woody crops$3,00013th of 13

What the fields held

Hardy County harvested 26,861 acres of cropland in 2022, sixth of 52 counties in West Virginia. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 67% of that, corn for grain 18%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage18,061under 0.1%
Corn for grain4,778under 0.1%
Corn for silage1,962under 0.1%
Soybeans1,583under 0.1%
Orchard land38under 0.1%
of which apples6under 0.1%
Vegetables30under 0.1%
Berries13under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: wheat, barley, potatoes, pecans and grapes.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms36.7%

Hardy County ranks 11th of 52 counties in West Virginia on this measure.

  • 33,739 acres of cropland, 25% of farmland
  • 57,371 acres of pastureland, 42% of farmland
  • 56,450 acres of woodland, 41% of farmland
  • 24 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Hardy County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 98 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 274 acres, second-largest of 47 in West Virginia. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 32.8% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 6.2% of the total.

1–99%10–4928%50–17933%180–49919%500–9995%1,000–1,9993%2,000+3%
Hardy County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Turkeys482,7210.50%
Broilers sold in 202234,638,6990.38%
Laying hens595,2500.15%
Beef cows10,457under 0.1%
Goats673under 0.1%
Cattle and calves22,083under 0.1%
Sheep and lambs807under 0.1%
Horses and ponies358under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs265under 0.1%
Milk cows21under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Hardy County's 500 farms are made by 885 producers. Their average age is 57.9, 0.8 years below the West Virginia average. Women are 35.7% of them.

Under 3512%35–4411%45–5414%55–6424%65–7422%75+17%
Hardy County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms580−13.8%
Land in farms, acres154,689−11.5%
Average farm size, acres267+2.6%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$191 million+41.4%
Turkeys, head538,440−10.3%
Broilers sold, head36,493,578−5.1%
Laying hens, head447,744+32.9%
Beef cows, head11,306−7.5%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Hardy County accounts for 28.4% of farm sales in West Virginia and 2.2% of the farms in West Virginia. Rank West Virginia counties for turkeys.

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