What Are The Biggest Industries In Maryland?

Maryland is one of the original 13 British Colonies in America that is situated in the Mid-Atlantic region of the country. Maryland is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Delaware, Pennsylvania, District of Columbia, West Virginia, and Virginia. Maryland is the nineteenth most populous U.S. state with a population of about 6,045,680people. The largest city in Maryland by area is Baltimore, while the capital city is Annapolis. Maryland was named after Queen Henrietta Maria, who was referred to as Queen Mary in England. Maryland was established by Calvert George, a catholic who was wanted to provide a spiritual haven for Catholics. King Charles I granted George an official colonial charter in 1632. 16 counties in Maryland border the Chesapeake-Bay estuary and its branches, forming a 4,000miles long shoreline.

The Economy Of Maryland

Maryland had the fifteenth largest economy in the United States in 2016, with a GDP of $333.336billion. According to the United States Census-Bureau, Maryland had the highest median household-income of about $72,483 in 2013 in the country, followed by Connecticut and New Jersey. Two of Maryland’s counties (Montgomery and Howard) were ranked among the top twenty richest counties in the United States. Maryland had the most millionaires-per-capita and the lowest poverty rate (7.8%) in the country in 2013. The economy of Maryland benefits from its proximity to Washington D.C., with emphasis on the administrative and technical tasks of the bio-research laboratories and the aerospace/defense industry. The unemployment rate of Maryland was 3.6% in November 2019, with the leading sectors by employment being the local and state government, technical and professional services, and the health-care and social assistance.

The Largest Industries In Maryland

Agriculture And Fishing

The economy of Maryland was based on tobacco farming throughout the colonial period, with most slaves and indentured servants working in the tobacco plantations. After the slaves gained their freedom, they acquired land and continued growing tobacco. Maryland has a huge area of fertile-land in its Piedmont and coastal region that is being infringed by urbanization. A huge percentage of the fertile land is used for dairy farming and planting perishable crops like peas, squash, muskmelons, tomatoes, sweet corn, watermelons, and cucumber. The southern counties in Maryland are warm and can support tobacco farming. Most of this state’s crop revenue is from nursery and greenhouse products (young fruit trees, ornamental shrubs, and flowers). The most significant fruit crop in Maryland is apples.

There is a huge automated chicken-farming sector in the southern parts of Maryland. The leading farm product in Maryland is broilers, followed by dairy products. Other livestock products in Maryland include turkeys, pigs, chicken eggs, and beef cattle. Another large sector of Maryland’s economy is commercial fishing. The biggest catches in Maryland by species include menhaden, striped bass, oysters, and blue crabs. Maryland is the leading supplier of blue crabs in the United States.

Manufacturing

Maryland had an agricultural economy until 1820 when the manufacturing industry started competing with the farming sector for economic domination. Commerce, metalworking, and shipbuilding transformed the city of Baltimore into one of the leading American cities. Baltimore had the biggest steel-making firms in the country and was the leading producer of men’s clothes. The shipbuilding yards in Baltimore from the 1800s still influence the city’s landscape to date. Maryland is home to over 3,900manufacturing companies. Currently, the most crucial manufactured products in this state are electronic and computer products. Some of the electronic equipment manufactured in Maryland include navigation, surveillance, and communication equipment.

The second most important sector in the manufacturing industry is food processing. Maryland has the most significant food processing plants by value in the United States. According to the Commerce Department of Maryland, the manufacturing sector had employed 103,630workers in 2015. The state hopes that the number will continue increasing as it continues to introduce more financial and tax incentives for investors. 

Biotechnology

Maryland is one of the leading centers for life science development and research in the United States. Maryland has the fourth-highest number of biotechnology firms of all the American states. Some of the government agencies and research institutions in this state include the federal FDA (Food-and-Drug Administration), Medimmune, U.S. Census Bureau, and Johns Hopkins University, among others. Emergent BioSolutions, the U.S. defense contractor that produces anthrax vaccine for the government military personnel, is based in Maryland. 

Tourism

Tourism is quite common in this state, with visitors touring Baltimore, nature in the western parts of Maryland, and the beaches. Some of the main attractions in Maryland include Camden-Yards baseball stadium, Fort McHenry, the Baltimore Aquarium, and Harborplace. Ocean City has been quite popular among tourists, particularly during summer. Ocean City became more popular after the government built the Chesapeake-Bay Bridge in 1952. The bridge connects the Eastern Shore to other highly populated Maryland cities. Annapolis, the capital city of Maryland, has numerous attractions like the waterfront, the historic district, and the state capitol building. The state has numerous attractions of interest to the country’s military history, given the role it played in both the war of 1812 and the American civil war. Other sites in Maryland include the beautiful towns along the Chesapeake Bay, like St. Maryland, the original capital of this state. 

Mining

According to the USGS (United States Geological Survey), there are over 450mines in Maryland, and this includes the 103mines in Baltimore. The main commodities mined in Maryland include Copper, Chromium, silver, Magnesium, Titanium, and Silica, and Iron, among others. The most valuable product in this state is the crushed stone that is used in the construction sector. The brownstone quarries that gave Washington D.C. and Baltimore their unique architecture during the nineteenth century was originally a predominant natural resource in Maryland. Coal is mined in the mountainous western side of the state.

Cybersecurity

Maryland has positioned itself to be the leading center for cybersecurity in the country after the completion of Port Covington. Maryland has the highest cybersecurity employees of all states in the country. Maryland is the cybersecurity headquarter of the United States. Some of the agencies based in Ft. Meade include the U.S. Cyber-Command and NSA (National-Security-Agency).