Agriculture is Virginia’s largest private industry by far. The industry has an economic impact of $70 billion annually and provides nearly 334,000 jobs in the commonwealth. The industries of agriculture and forestry together have a total economic impact of $91 billion and provide more than 442,000 jobs in the commonwealth. Every job in agriculture and forestry supports 1.7 jobs elsewhere in Virginia’s economy. According to a 2017 economic impact study, production agriculture employs nearly 54,000 farmers and workers in Virginia and generates approximately $3.8 billion in total output.

The industries of agriculture and forestry together have a total economic impact of $91 billion and provide more than 442,000 jobs in the commonwealth.

In addition, value-added industries that depend on farm commodities employ more than 69,000 workers. When the employment and value-added impact of agriculture and forestry are considered together, they make up 9.5 percent of the commonwealth’s total gross domestic product. In addition to tangible benefits such as farm cash receipts and jobs, agriculture provides many intangible benefits. These include recreation, tourism, wildlife habitat, biodiversity, flood mitigation, improved water quality and soil stabilization.