Ag census shows declining county, state farms

Nevada Daily Mail

If you counted the number of farms in Vernon County in 2012, you'd come up short compared to years past. The number of county farms accounted for in the USDA's 2012 Census of Agriculture has decreased since the last count in 2007.

The USDA conducts the count every five years, and highlights all things agriculture, including number of farms and acres of farmland, money generated by agriculture sales and changes in farm management. For recording purposes, the USDA considers farms to be "any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold."

According to the 2012 survey, Vernon County was home to 1,356 farms, totaling 418,614 acres of farming land -- nearly 78 percent of the land in the county.

In the five years between the 2007 and 2012 agriculture censuses, Vernon County lost 27 farms and 37,230 acres of farmland. The 2007 census showed a decrease of 16 farms from 2002.

Census data suggests that a loss of farms throughout the state has been happening for years. Reports show a slow decline in the number of Missouri farms since at least 1964, though the state ranks second, following Texas, for the most number of farms in 2012. The preliminary census report published in February said the state had a "significant decrease" in farms and agricultural land since the 2007 survey.

The 2012 agriculture census noted that nationally, farms have decreased.

"The number of farms and land in farms were down slightly, but held steady," the U.S. Farms and Farmers preliminary report said in February. In 2012, there were 2.1 million farms in the United States, down more than 4 percent since 2007.

"This continues a long-term trend of fewer farms," the report stated.

Joseph Parcell, chair of agricultural and applied economics at the University of Missouri, said Thursday that several factors contribute to the trend of declining farm numbers. Those include urban encroachment pushing farmers out, retirement of farmers and several difficult years for livestock producers. Entering agriculture has become difficult because of the startup funds needed.

"The cost of owning or getting into farming -- you almost have to be part of a farming family," he said. "The amount of equity or cash you have to come up with is pretty tough."

While Vernon County was down nearly 30 farms in the last five years, the region has seen skyrocketing numbers in terms of farms offering a diverse range of livestock.

The county ranked first in having the most hog and pig farms in the state. Fifty-five hog farms are located within the county, up five since 2007. Statewide, hog farms have decreased some 29 percent, falling from nearly 3,000 farms raising swine in 2007 to 2,128 in 2012.

The number of poultry farms also increased, with 183 farms in the county raising and handling poultry compared to 82 in 2007. That jump is also reflected in the total number of poultry farms in Missouri, which increased 24 percent since 2007.

The census counted 53,401 farms in 2012 that raised cattle, down 8 percent from 2007. In Vernon County, 823 farms raised cattle, barely below 2007's number of 846 farms. Cattle head count came in 13 percent lower than the previous census.

Vernon County was home to 74 goat farms in 2012, up nearly 30 percent in the five years between censuses. Sheep farms have nearly doubled, increasing from 33 in 2007 to 62 in 2012.

Nationally, sold livestock was valued at $182.2 billion dollars in 2012, up 18.7 percent since 2007.