Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
2011 was a record year for agricultural exports from North Carolina. The value of exports of agricultural products topped $3.75 billion, an increase of $500 million from 2010, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The export numbers were high enough to rank North Carolina 11th nationally.
The USDA tracks 20 commodities for the report. North Carolina saw increases in 17 of the categories; the largest jump was in cotton, which rose from $306 million in 2010 to $509 million in 2011. Other commodities with significant increases in export value were pork, chicken meat and wheat.
Agricultural exports help boost farm prices and incomes for local farmers. Exports also support about 36,000 jobs directly on farms and indirectly through food processing, storage and transportation.
Click below to listen to the Commissioner and Rhonda talk about North Carolina’s record year for agricultural exports. And if you’re interested in exporting your agricultural product, contact the NCDA&CS International Trade Office at 919-707-3153.
[Audio:http://info.ncagr.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/Troxler_12-11.mp3|titles=Today’s Topic for Dec. 11]
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