Volume 8 • Number 1 • Fall 2009

There are many ways to look at agriculture in Massachusetts: one is to look at the statistics. While it can seem more rewarding to visit with farmers, stop by a farmers market or CSA or eat a meal made of Massachusetts-grown food, the numbers tell an interesting story. Looking at the numbers provided by the recent USDA Agricultural Census as well as the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, a couple of key facts stood out for me:

• According to the USDA, there were 1,500 more farms in the state in 2007 than there were in 2002 on about the same total acreage.
• Massachusetts is first in New England and ninth nationally in total direct sales by farmers to consumers. We are second nationally in value of average direct sales at $25,356 per farm.

On a different note, agriculture is not the only thing that is changing. Here at UMass Amherst, a reorganization of academic units has led to the creation of a new college. The College of Natural Sciences is the largest on campus and I am pleased to tell you that Extension will join the Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station as units of the Center for Agriculture in the new college.

— Nancy Garrabrants, Director