Ag Census shows shows farms consolidating and farmers getting older

The 2017 Census of Agriculture was released Thursday; here are some early reports on the most interesting data:

The total number of U.S. farms declined 3% from 2012 to 2017 and 7.8% from 1997 to 2017, according to the census. Since the census is released every five years, 2012 is the most recent data before this one. "The total number of farms on Dec. 31, 2017, was calculated at 2,042,220, which was 67,110 fewer than reported in the 2012 Census of Agriculture," Greg Henderson reports for Drovers, a beef industry publication. Though the number of farms dropped 3%, the amount of land being farmed dropped only 1.5% and the average size of farms increased 441 acres from 2012 to 2017. That reflects a growing trend of farm consolidation.

Dairy consolidation is a rising trend too. "The Ag Census shows that 54,599 farms had milk cows in 2017, but only 39,303 dairy farms actually sold milk from the cows they owned. The difference: Nearly 17,000 farms reported they have one to nine milk cows, and it’s likely these small herds used the milk for home use only," Jim Dickrell reports for industry publication Dairy Herd Management. "Of those herds reporting milk sales, 25,256 farms have one to 99 cows, representing 64.3% of dairy farms with milk sales. There were 10,583 dairy farms with 100 to 499 cows, and 3,464 herds with more than 500 cows. USDA reports that 189 herds in the U.S. had more than 5,000 cows. Herds with 100 to 499 cows represent 26.9% of herds with milk sales. Those with 500 or more cows represent 8.8% of herds with milk sales."

There were 321,000 farmers under age 35 in 2017, up only 2% from 208,000 in 2012. That's concerning since the cohort of farmers over 65 increased far more in that time frame, with senior farmers now outnumbering young farmers more than 6 to 1. And even the paltry growth in young farmers' numbers might be partly because of a change in this census: the U.S. Department of Agriculture "only recently began allowing farms to list more than one 'operator'—meaning children of farm owners can now be listed along with their parents. Since over 100,000 of those young farmers—nearly the entire difference—are part-owners or tenants of the farm, the overall percentage is only up by 2 percent, from 7.6 to 9.4 percent of total farmers," Julia Hotz reports for Civil Eats.

Ag Census data shows that ranchers are making great strides in reviving the bison population, according to National Bison Association Executive Director Dave Carter. The bison population on American ranches and farms was 183,780 in 2017, a 13.3% increase from 2012. "The majority of the native habitat of bison is under the stewardship of individual farmers and ranchers, so restoration of the herds requires that raising bison is economically sustainable, as well as environmentally sustainable," Carter said.

If you really want to get into the nitty-gritty of the Ag Census, listen to this hour-long AgriTalk podcast on AgWeb that breaks down the numbers with Joe Parsons of the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, which administers the Ag Census.