Growing revenue.

• Position: CASH CROP

Today's agriculture is more than crops and livestock. Farmers also make money from value-added products and renewable-energy production.

Farmers used to buy seeds in the spring and sell the harvest in fall. Those who raised livestock followed a similar schedule. It was a simple system that created the state's No. 1 industry, which the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services says contributes about $84 billion to the economy annually. But the world has become complex and expensive. Available to support North Carolina farmers are five of the six world leaders in biotechnology, including...