According to the 2015 Certified Organic Survey recently released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Minnesota ranked 10th in the nation for total number of certified organic farms.

Minnesota had 431 certified organic farms with 115,321 acres that year, or about 3% of the nation's total number of certified organic farms. Certified organic acreage in the state was down 9,323 acres from 2011, according to the survey.

In 2015, the average organic farm in Minnesota was 268 acres, compared to 340 acres for the U.S. Organic farms with sales include 103 farms with milk cows, 11 farms with beef cattle and nine with hogs and pigs.

TENTH IN THE NATION: Minnesota had 431 certified organic farms in 2015, ranking 10th in the United States for total number of farms by state. Those farms together total 115,321 acres, about 3% of the nation's total organic farm acreage. (Photo: RiverNorthPhotography/iStock/Thinkstock)

Minnesota ranks second in certified organic corn for grain and soybean production in the U.S. and made up 14% and 11% of the national production, respectively.

Minnesota produced 12% of the nation’s organic oats, with sales totaling $1,073,458 in 2015.

Minnesota produced 23% of the nation’s organic goat milk, with sales totaling $544,310.

Six Minnesota farms made certified organic maple syrup in 2015. There were 450 gallons produced from 2,000 total taps. Sales totaled $17,492.

The 2015 Certified Organic Survey is an inventory of all known organic producers in the United States that are certified. This is the fourth organic production and practices survey NASS has conducted on the national level. Previous surveys were conducted in 2014, 2011 and 2008.

The remaining top 10 states for certified farms in 2015 were California (2,588 farms), Wisconsin (1,200), New York (912), Pennsylvania (678), Iowa (672), Washington (596), Vermont (567), Maine (476) and Ohio (460).

In the U.S., there are more than 4.3 million certified organic acres on 12,703 farms. Total organic sales in 2015 were more than $6.1 million.

The selection of certified organic products sold by U.S. farms in 2015 was diverse, from dairy and meats to fruits, vegetables and grains. The value of sales from livestock and poultry products led the way ($1.9 billion), followed by vegetables ($1.4 billion); fruits, tree nuts and berries ($1.2 billion); livestock and poultry ($743 million); and field crops ($660 million).

The top five commodities in certified organic sales were:

•milk, $1.2 billion, up 8.4% from $1.1 billion in 2014

•eggs, $732 million, up 74.5% from $420 million in 2014

•broiler chickens, $420 million, up 13.1% from $371 million in 2014

•apples, $302 million, up 20% from $251 million in 2014

•lettuce, $262 million, down less than 1% from $264 million in 2014

Complete results of the 2015 Certified Organic Survey are available at: nass.usda.gov.

Source: USDA NASS