Small Farms and Specialty Crops

Serving Fresno and Tulare Counties

The Small Farms and Specialty Crops advisor and staff conduct research and extension programs to benefit small-scale farming operations and specialty crops. We serve a diverse clientele including:

• Small-scale family farms
• Beginning farmers
• Immigrant and refugee farmers
• Specialty crops outside of traditional extension programs and commodity boards

Specialty crops in Fresno and Tulare Counties include Asian specialty vegetables and herbs, jujubes, moringa, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and any other crops grown for small-scale production.

What is a "small" farm?

78% of the 6,081 farms in Fresno County are small farms according to the USDA-NASS 2012 Census of Agriculture. The USDA defines a small farm by income, not acreage: a small farm has less than $350,000 in annual gross cash farm income.

Within UC Cooperative Extension, the term "small farm" is used more broadly to describe farming operations whose needs for research and extension are outside of traditional commodity-based extension programs, such as highly diversified farms, farms with value-added products or direct marketed produce, and limited-resource, beginning, and socially disadvantaged farmers.