Urban areas prove profitable for farmers selling directly to consumers

Urban markets seem to be especially targeted by farmers engaged in direct sales. Fully 84 percent of farms that sell directly to consumers are located in metropolitan counties or in adjacent rural counties, and these farms accounted for 89 percent of the direct sales income reported by farm operators in 2007. Average direct sales value per farm decreased for farms located progressively farther from urban centers: from $10,987 for farms located in metropolitan counties, to $6,767 for farms in adjacent rural counties, and to $6,090 for farms in remote rural counties. This chart was first published in the September 2010 issue of Amber Waves magazine.

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