Florida Fact Sheet

• Everyone knows about Florida’s citrus, but did you know the state produces 40% of the U.S. bell peppers? — Kathy Swift
• Miami-Dade County has 2,000 farms averaging less than 100 acres each. Production is mainly sugar cane, tomatoes, green beans, and foliage/bedding plants, turfgrass. No.2 grower of Orchids. — Cliff
• $76.5 billion industry supplies 1,609,139 jobs
• No.1 in U.S. production value of oranges, foliage, grapefruit, squash, and sugar cane.
• No.2 in U.S. production of bell peppers, eggplant, greenbeans, tomatoes, tangerines, strawberries, and horses.
• No.3 in watermelons.
• No.7 in overall market of products sold.
• Only 446 chicken farms
• 9.2 million acres farmed
• In 2008 Florida was home to 47,500 farms, 9.25 million acres of farmland, 5,300 farms with over $100K in sales, 195 acres avg farm size, 2,500 more farms than 10 years ago
• The Florida horse industry generates $6.5 billion in revenue, Marion County, FL has more horses than any other in the U.S.
• There are over 900 horse farms with over 600 thoroughbred farms and training centers
• There are roughly 300K horses in FL, about 70% are involved in showing and recreation
• As of 1/1/09 FL cattle total 1.7 million head, down 10K from ’08. Ranks No.10 in beef catle.
• Florida dairies produced 2.06 billion pounds of milk in ’08
• Top 5 Florida commodities (% 0f US) – Greenhouse nursery (10.5%), Oranges (66.8%), Tomatoes (20.5%), Cane for sugar (46.6%), Cattle (0.9%)
• Florida is home to 4 of the 10 U.S. largest cow-calf operations. One FL ranch owns the largest brood cow herd in the U.S.
• Florida has 4 million acres of pastureland and 1 million acres of grazed woodland

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