The top 10 states in sales accounted for 78% of U.S. organic sales in 2014, with California the leader at $2.2 billion.

Nationally, 14,093 certified and exempt organic U.S. farms sold $5.5 billion in organic products in 2014, up 72% since 2008. The selection of organic products sold by U.S. farms in 2014 was diverse, from dairy and proteins, to fruits, vegetables and grains. The top five commodities in organic sales were:

• Milk, $1.08 billion  (organic milk sales represent about 5% of total fluid milk sales.)
• Eggs, $420 million
• Broiler chickens, $372 million
• Lettuce, $264 million
• Apples, $250 million

Additionally, the industry shows potential for growth in production as approximately 5,300 organic producers (39%) report they intend to increase organic production in the United States over the next five years. Another 688 farms with no current organic production are in the process of transitioning into organic agriculture production.

The vast majority of organic agricultural products sold in 2014 were sold close to the farm of origin. The first point of sale for 80% of all U.S. organic products was less than 500 miles from the farm, compared to 74% in 2008: 46% were sold within 100 miles, 34% within 101-499 miles, 18% were sold 500 or more miles, and 2% were sold internationally.

According to NASS Administrator Joseph T. Reilly, “The report also shows that organic producers are providing a wide variety of products to customers and are getting those items from farm to table more efficiently.”

Survey results are available here 

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