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Statistics and Research on New and Beginning Producers using Census of Agriculture Data

Author

Listed:
  • Katchova, Ani L.
  • Sun, Zhining

Abstract

In 1973, Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz encouraged producers to “get big or get out.” According to the Census of Agriculture, the past few decades have witnessed a general decline in the number of U.S. farms. Conducted every 5 years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Census of Agriculture collects data on agricultural production, demographics, and economic factors for producers nationwide. The 2022 Census of Agriculture revealed a rising average age among U.S. producers, with the average age reaching 58.1 years in 2022, an increase of 0.6 years since 2017, continuing the long-term trend of an aging producer population. Between 2017 and 2022, the number of farms decreased from 2,042,220 to 1,900,487, indicating a loss of 141,733 farms, a 6.9% decline. Total U.S. farmland also decreased by 2.2%, from 900 million acres in 2017 to 880 million acres in 2022. This reduction in both the number of farms and total farmland acres has coincided with an increase in average farm size, which reached 463 acres per farm in 2022. During the same period, the total number of producers remained relatively stable at around 3.4 million, showing only a slight decrease of 0.8% between 2017 and 2022.

Suggested Citation

  • Katchova, Ani L. & Sun, Zhining, 2024. "Statistics and Research on New and Beginning Producers using Census of Agriculture Data," Choices: The Magazine of Food, Farm, and Resource Issues, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 39(4), October.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:aaeach:347841
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.347841
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