ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - The U.S. Agriculture Department says the number of farms in Maryland continues to shrink.
The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service in Annapolis says in a statement that the number of farms in Maryland in 2015 is estimated at 12,200. That's 100 fewer than in 2014.
The agency says the numbers have been declining since at least 1959, when the state had nearly 27,600 farms.
The total land in farms decreased by 10,000 acres to about 2.02 million.
The average farm size increased by one acre, to 166.
