Ballston Emerges as ZIP with most Farms in Region, Saratoga Springs’ ZIP Gains the Most

The Capital Region ZIP codes covering Saratoga Springs and Troy saw the greatest increase in farm operations between 2017 and 2022 while those covering Greenwich and Argyle in Washington County saw the biggest declines, according to a Center for Economic Growth (CEG) analysis of new ZIP code tabulations from the 2022 Census of Agriculture by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

As of 2022, the 12866 ZIP code, which covers the area spanning from Saratoga Springs and part of Stillwater to Wilton, had 86 farm operations, an increase of 32 from the last Census of Agriculture in 2017. During the same period, the 12180 ZIP code, which runs from South Troy to Raymertown, saw its ranks of farm operations increase by 31 to 57.

In 2017, the ZIP code with the most farm operations in Capital Region was 12834, which runs from Easton and Greenwich to Cossayuna. However, over the six-year period between the censuses, the 12834 ZIP code lost 44 farm operations, dropping its total to 97. That decline left the 12834 ZIP code the second most farms in the eight-county region.

The region’s new No. 1 ZIP code for farms was 12020, which includes Malta and Ballston Spa, totaling 102. The 12809 ZIP code for Argle also saw a significant decline in farm operations over the six-year period, decreasing by 36 to 59.

These ZIP code statistics reflects trends that played throughout the region between 2017 and 2022, when the number of farms declined by 9.9 percent to 3,068 and their total acreage declined by 6.8 percent to 522,794. However, Rensselaer, Saratoga and Warren counties were the only countries in the region to increase their number of farm operations during the six-year period. Saratoga and Washington counties were the only ones to increase their amount of farmland.

Even though Greenwich ZIP code (12834) had the biggest decline in farm operations, its number of farms with large operations (> 1,000 acres) increased from two to six. That may indicate a consolidation of farm operations, especially when considering the 12834 ZIP code saw its number of mid-sized operations (50 to 999 acres) decline by 36 to 65. The Voorheesville (12186) and Argyle (12809) ZIP codes similarly saw increase in their ranks of large operations increase by eight and five, respectively.

CEG Initiatives

To support the growth of the Capital Region’s agricultural economy, CEG is involved in the following activities:

• Highlighting the Capital Region’s rural communities and farms through the CapNY
• Providing technical assistance to local agriculture-related manufacturers, such as cheese makers and breweries, to help them operate more efficiently, tap new markets and grow in the region.

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