Small farms in Mountain West are getting more numerous, but there are fewer of moderate size

Smaller farms are on the rise in the West, but moderate-sized family farms are on the wane. "The story of farming in the country, and in the West, has become a tale of two farmers," writes David Frey for New West. "Countering the growth of small farms is a concentration of more and more agriculture in the hands of fewer and fewer mega-farms. The small farms serve a growing niche of farmer’s markets. The giant farms fill the supermarket. The middle is disappearing."

USDA's Census of Agriculture released last month showed that in seven Western states -- Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming -- the amount of agricultural lands decreased by 5 million acres between 2002 and 2007, while the number of farms increased by 19 percent.

While small-farm advocates see the move as positive, others worry that without moderate-sized family farms, Western agriculture is in jeopardy. “Ultimately,” says Brian Depew, director of rural organizing and outreach programs for the Center for Rural Affairs, “a bifurcated system is not a sustainable system.” (Read more)