2025 CEQ Annual Report

Land Stewardship

Preserved Land               Forests              Wetlands

Farmland

In 2025, Connecticut preserved 953 acres of agricultural land, which was approximately 38 percent greater than the previous year (693 acres) and 20 percent less than the previous ten-year average (1,197 acres). The number of farmland properties preserved in 2025 was 10; the average acreage per farmland property preserved was 95.3; and the average cost per acre was $7,413, which was about 38 percent greater than the average cost per acre for the previous three-year period (2022-2024).²⁵

The cumulative acreage preserved by the Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DoAG), which began preserving agricultural land by purchasing development rights in 1978, has increased slowly and now totals approximately 51,203 acres. 

The total land area in farms in Connecticut for 2025 was estimated at 370,000 acres, which was a decline of approximately 2,000 acres from 2022 data.²⁶ In 1982, the total land area in farms in Connecticut was reported to be approximately 444,200 acres, a loss of approximately 74,000 acres or 17 percent since 1982.²⁷  Farmland has been lost because of development pressure, including the use of farmland for electricity generation. Finding the right balance between preserving agricultural land for food production and developing sustainable electricity generation is an important challenge.

In addition to the production of food and agricultural products, Connecticut’s farms have a role in mitigation of, adaptation to, and resiliency from the negative impacts of climate change. Well managed farms store carbon from the atmosphere in soil and plants, capture and store water from extreme precipitation events, and provide for biomass derived renewable energy. Soil is one of the sinks for atmospheric carbon and one that can be managed to mitigate the effects of climate change.²⁸

Public Act 24-100 Sections 1 and 2 eliminated a requirement that the Commissioner of DoAG consult with the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner before approving a request to remove a development rights restriction from agricultural land.

Goal: The Connecticut Farmland Preservation Program aims to protect 130,000 acres of Connecticut’s most productive farmland.

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²⁵   _{Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DoAg), Farmland Preservation Program Report, Calendar Year 2025 PDR Farmland Closings January 1, 2025 - Dec. 31, 2025; personal communication from C. Weimar, January 8, 2026.}

²⁶ _{United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), 2022 Census of Agriculture State Profile; www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Online_Resources/County_Profiles/Connecticut/cp99009.pdf, www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stats/Ag_Overview/stateOverview.php?state=CONNECTICUT, and 2022 Census of Agriculture; www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_1_State_Level/Connecticut/ctv1.pdf.}

²⁷ _{USDA, AgCensus, Table 1. Farms, Land in Farms, and Land Use: 1982 and Earlier Census Years, Connecticut 1982; www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/archive/files/1982-Connecticut-CHAPTER_1_State_Data-121-Table-01.pdf.}

²⁸ _{DEEP, GC3 Final Report: Working & Natural Lands Working Group - Agriculture/Soils Working Subgroup; portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/climatechange/GC3/GC3-working-group-reports/GC3_WNL_Wetlands_Final_Report_111320.pdf#page=11.}