The Agricultural Review: History, NCDA&CS Publisher, Content and Staff
Profile updated November 2026
The Agricultural Review is the monthly newspaper of the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, published since 1926 and mailed free to any North Carolina resident who asks. Produced by the department's Public Affairs Division in Raleigh, it pairs free farmer classifieds with news on markets, plant and animal health, pesticide programs, festivals and the people of North Carolina agriculture.
| First edition | 1926 |
|---|---|
| Publisher | N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Public Affairs Division |
| Frequency | Monthly, 12 issues a year |
| Cost | Free to North Carolina residents on request |
| Print run | 15,000 copies for May 2024, at 3.9 cents each |
| Commissioner | Steve Troxler |
| Official website | NCAGR.gov |
History of The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture)
The North Carolina Department of Agriculture published the first edition of the Agricultural Review in 1926, part of the same wave of state-run farm papers that produced market bulletins across the South. From the start it was mailed free to North Carolina citizens who asked for it, and at one point more than 60,000 people received it, according to the North Carolina Periodicals Index at East Carolina University.
The Review reached Volume 99 in 2024 and Volume 100 in 2025. The State Library of North Carolina keeps digitized issues in its state documents collection, and the department posts current issues and a feature story archive online.
The State Library's catalog files the Review under the department's Market News series, a reminder of its roots as a marketing paper for farmers, though today it is the main print voice of the whole department, from food safety to agricultural promotion.
The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture) Today
The Review is published 12 times a year by the Public Affairs Division. The May 2024 issue shows its range: the Got to Be NC Festival in Raleigh, pesticide collection days, a name-image-likeness deal promoting chocolate milk with N.C. State basketball player DJ Burns, a $6.2 million grant program for the middle of the food supply chain, avian influenza in a dairy herd, N.C. Wine Month, drone pesticide licensing and forest pests such as beech leaf disease and the Asian longhorned beetle.
The department also runs online ad submission and a Crop This! photo challenge for readers.
What The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture) Is Publishing Now
Free classifieds for North Carolinians
Ads are free for North Carolina residents, limited to 30 words including name and contact details, two per family per issue, with a price required on for-sale ads and priority for agriculture.
Department news
Commissioner columns, plant and animal health alerts, pesticide and food safety programs, grants and agronomic tips on soil and tissue testing.
People and promotion
Profiles of farmers, students and agriculture leaders, and coverage of Got to Be NC, the State Fair and commodity months.
The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture) Editors and Staff
The Review's masthead and the department's Public Affairs page name these people:
- Steve Troxler - Commissioner of Agriculture
- Andrea E. Ashby - Director, Public Affairs Division; Editor and Managing Editor (2024 masthead)
- Brandon Herring - Staff Writer
- Heather Overton - Staff Writer (2024 masthead)
- Jackie Bullock - Ads and Circulation Manager (2024 masthead)
- Jamey Cross - Editorial contact
Who Reads The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture)
Readers are North Carolina farmers, landowners, gardeners and rural families from the mountains to the coast. The state is a national leader in sweet potatoes, tobacco, hogs, broilers and turkeys, Christmas trees and forestry, and the Review's mix of classifieds and department news follows that diversity. Statewide numbers are available from USDA NASS.
Any paper that covers a chocolate milk endorsement deal and an elm zigzag sawfly in the same issue has readers ready for anything. farm.FM adds farm satire about sweet potato country, farm humor about State Fair traffic and ranch humor for the cattle farms in the foothills. Its farm jokes fit nicely within a 30-word limit, mostly.
farm.FM calls itself the nation's first satirical farm site, and between the headlines it spins Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers; a good place to start reading is this farm.FM columnist's archive.
The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture) Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- NCDA&CS: Agricultural Review - the Review's home page.
- NCDA&CS: Ag Review classifieds - current classified ads.
- East Carolina University: North Carolina Periodicals Index - the Review's 1926 start and readership.
- State Library of North Carolina: Agricultural Review, May 2025 - the 100th-volume issue.
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - North Carolina farm statistics.
The Agricultural Review (North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture) FAQ
Is the Agricultural Review free?
Yes. The department mails it free to North Carolina residents who request it.
How often is the Agricultural Review published?
Monthly, 12 issues a year.
Who can place an ad?
North Carolina residents with an in-state address and phone; ads are free, up to 30 words, two per family per issue.
When did the Agricultural Review begin?
Its first edition was published in 1926.
A century after its first edition, The Agricultural Review still arrives free in North Carolina mailboxes with news and a page of neighbors' classifieds.