6 • September 2019
COVER STORY
COAST RIVER bUSINeSS JOUrNAL
SMALL FARMS
FLOURISH IN
CLATSOP COUNTY
LUKe WHIttAKer
During peak season, Anita Dotson was harvesting around 40 pounds of tomatoes weekly to sell at local markets.
Necanicum Fresh Farm exemplifies entrepreneurial energy of ag startups
By LUKE WHITTAKER
Coast river business Journal
S
EASIDE — Clatsop County
is in the midst of a small farm
revival.
More than new 25 farms
have started in Clatsop County since
2012, according to latest U.S. Consen-
sus of Agriculture figures. The small-
est farms, those categorized between 1
to 9 acres, have experienced the big-
gest jump, expanding from 32 in 2012
to 74 in 2017.
The U.S. Census of Agriculture,
conducted every five years, exam-
ines land use and ownership, operator
characteristics, production practices,
income and expenditures as well as a
complete count of U.S. Farms and the
people who operate them.
The latest figures reveal a boom
cycle for new farms in Clatsop County,
which has seen overall farms numbers
grow from 199 in 2012 to 226 in 2017,
a 13% increase and more than double
the Oregon average.
As a whole, Oregon’s farms have
increased from 35,439 in 2012 to
37,616, a 6% increase.
Fresh crop of farmers
Anita and Bill Dotson are among
the latest crop of small farms to join
Clatsop County, officially launching
Necanicum Fresh Farm on two acres
along Highway 26 in Seaside in 2018.
“This was my first full year,” said
Anita standing in a green maize of