Counties in North Carolina by land in farms
Sampson County had the highest land in farms of 98 counties in 2012, at 291,635 acres. New Hanover County had the lowest, at 2,881 acres. The median was 71,875 acres and the figure for North Carolina was 8,414,756 acres. Source: the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Map of counties, 2012
- Under 35K
- 35K to 57K
- 57K to 72K
- 72K to 99K
- 99K to 130K
- 130K and over
- No data
Top 40 counties, 2012
Full ranking
Other periods
About this ranking
Land operated by farms in the census year, in acres, including cropland, pasture, woodland and land under farm buildings, as counted by the USDA Census of Agriculture every five years.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 2 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2012 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. (2026). Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022) (Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012) [Data set]. Data Commons. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/
MLA 9
Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012. U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, 11 Oct. 2026, https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Data Commons, https://datacommons.org. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. 2026. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012. Dataset. Distributed by Data Commons. Accessed October 11, 2026. https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012.
Harvard
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service (2026) Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012 [Dataset]. Via Data Commons. Available at: https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{department_counties_in_north_carolina_2012,
author = {{U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service}},
title = {{Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
publisher = {Data Commons},
url = {https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/},
urldate = {2026-10-11},
note = {Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org). Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012. Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service
TI - Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2012
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/11
PB - Data Commons
DB - Invokely
UR - https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012
Y2 - 2026/10/11
N1 - Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org).
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2012.
N1 - Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Counties in North Carolina by land in farms using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"farmland_area","level":"province","within":"North Carolina","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=farmland_area&level=province&within=North%20Carolina&limit=10Questions
Which county has the highest land in farms?
Sampson County, with 291,635 acres in 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Which county has the lowest land in farms?
New Hanover County, with 2,881 acres in 2012.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved 2026-10-11. 2 counties have no value for 2012 and are not ranked.