North Carolina is one of the most diverse agricultural states in the country.  With a variety of different crops and livestock some of them will end up on your dinner table this holiday season. Starting with one of the larger cash receipts for North Carolina livestock producers we will look at the pork industry. At the end of 2022 North Carolina had 8.2 million hogs and pigs in the state. To truly grasp how large of a number that is we can look at the total population of some nearby states. Tennessee is the 15th largest state in the country, and they have 7.2 million people, South Carolina is the 23rd largest with 5.5 million and Virginia is barely ahead of North Carolina hogs with 8.8 million people.

Broilers are another common agricultural practice in North Carolina. A broiler is a chicken raised specifically for meat production. Every year North Carolina raises over 976 million broilers to help feed families in North Carolina as well as around the world. We are also known for our turkey production as we produced 28 million turkeys in 2023.

Finally, we had over 350,000 beef cows at the beginning of 2024. As we begin 2025 and look forward to the future, it is important to remember the impact North Carolina agriculture has had on North Carolinians and the world. 

Jared Butler is the Agriculture Agent for North Carolina Cooperative Extension in Lee County.