ALBEMARLE COUNTY MARKET

Albemarle County, Virginia Farmers Market — Buy & Sell Local Crops Near You

🌽 Albemarle County has more backyard fruit trees and home gardens than anyone could eat from. Crop Market connects them with neighbors in Alberene, Batesville and Covesville. Watch for local peanuts when it comes into season in Virginia. Posting an ad is free and sellers keep every dollar.

Farming in Albemarle County by the Numbers

Albemarle County has 866 farms on 167,583 acres (about 194 acres each). Together they sold $43.2 million of farm products in 2022, led by fruit & nuts, cattle and nursery & greenhouse plants.

Orchards and vineyards here grow grapes and peaches, and local fields produce pumpkins, tomatoes, green beans and lettuce. Beekeepers tend about 725 honey bee colonies.

103 farms in Albemarle County already sell straight to the public, about $11.4 million a year in direct sales. Crop Market gives them, and every backyard grower, a free way to reach more neighbors.

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2022 Census of Agriculture.

Farm Life in Albemarle County

Albemarle County farms and homesteads keep 18,134 head of cattle, 5,425 egg-laying hens and 2,847 sheep. Grass-fed beef sold by the quarter or half is a common way ranchers sell direct.

About 1,560 people run or help run farms in Albemarle County, with an average age of 59. 44% of them are women. 95 are under 35 - the next generation of local growers. 38 farms earn money from agritourism - things like u-pick fields, pumpkin patches, farm stays and corn mazes.

Where Albemarle County stands out: it ranks #3 of 87 VA counties for selling food straight to the public and #4 of 92 VA counties for honey bee colonies.