The high cost of land has been a transforming factor in Howard County agriculture, leading to an increase in smaller farm operations and forcing farmers to be more creative in marketing their products, according to a recent economic survey.
Local agriculture, concentrated in the rural western part of the county, "looks increasingly like a tapestry of small farms involved in direct marketing enterprises such as turf, nursery horticulture products, fruits and vegetables, agritourism, and horses," says the introduction to the Howard County Agricultural Production and Marketing Survey 2003.
"There's been a transformational shift," said Ginger Myers, an agricultural marketing specialist who compiled the findings of the survey, which was released last week by the Howard County Economic Development Authority.
Much of the farmland is still being used for traditional commodity crops, and those farmers often use wholesalers or auctions, Myers said. But the rising price of land in Howard County, along with other pressures, is leading to smaller operations, with farmers seeking a high return on their products.
Farmers are turning to on-farm sales, farmers' markets, subscription services, agritourism and other ways to sell goods directly to customers, Myers said.
"For the small guys to make it, they have to find niche markets and market directly," said Tony Evans, coordinator of farmers' market programs with the Maryland Department of Agriculture. "You see more and more of it. It's the wave of the future."
The survey analyzes questionnaires returned by 102 farmers. A total of 865 were sent to people who own agricultural land or are known to rent land for farming. The responses represent approximately 27.6 percent of the county's agricultural land.
According to the study, farms that market directly to the public receive up to 80 cents per dollar spent because costs for transportation, packaging and advertising are eliminated or reduced.
Some other findings include:
Just over 85 percent of the responding farms were less than 100 acres.
More farmland is used to grow grain than any other crop, but horses and nursery/horticulture crops are the fastest-growing segments of the agricultural industry in Howard County.
Farms in the county are becoming increasingly multifunctional, such as dairy farms that grow and sell grain, and vegetable farms that offer pick-your-own pumpkins.
