United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service Sp Sy 3 (03) Farms and Land in Farms February 2003 Farms and Land in Farms Up Slightly in 2002 The number of farms in the United States in 2002 is estimated at 2.16 million, up 0.1 percent from 2001. The increase in farms occurred primarily in agricultural operations with $1,000-$9,999 in sales. Total land in farms, at 941.5 million acres, increased 170,000 acres from last year. The average size of farm at 436 acres, decreased one acre from 2001. The increase in the number of farms and land in farms primarily resulted from the inclusion of pasture only farms in 2002. The U.S. number of agricultural operations in the economic sales class $1,000-$9,999 increased 1.0 percent to 1,172,770 in 2002. Farms with sales in the $10,000-$99,999 economic class decreased 0.9% from 2001 to 637,160 operations. The number of farms with sales over $100,000 at 348,160 decreased 1.1 percent. Dry weather, below normal yields, and lower commodity prices contributed to the shifting of farms among the economic sales classes. The number of farms in the South Region increased by 5,700, 0.6 percent, and the number of farms in the West Region increased by 510, 0.2 percent. The North Central Region lost 3,300 farms, 0.4 percent. The number of farms declined 500, or 0.4 percent in the Northeast Region. The number of farms in 2002 increased in nine States, remained unchanged in 32 States, and decreased in nine States. Texas gained 3,000 farms while Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Oregon added 1,000 farms during the year. Arkansas, Montana, and South Carolina farms increased by 500. California, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and Tennessee farms declined by 1,000. New York lost 500 farms and North Dakota lost 300. Texas, which leads the Nation in acres in farms with 131 million acres, increased agricultural acreage during 2002 adding 1.0 million acres. States with decreases in land in farms were; Wisconsin, down 200,000 acres, and Arizona, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee which declined 100,000 acres. Other states losing agricultural acreage were Delaware, New Hampshire, and New Jersey, each down 10,000 acres. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Size Farm: United States, 1992-2002 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Land : Average Year : of Farms : in Farms : Farm Size -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number 1,000 Acres Acres : 1992 : 2,107,840 978,503 464 1993 : 2,201,590 968,845 440 1994 : 2,197,690 965,935 440 1995 : 2,196,400 962,515 438 1996 : 2,190,500 958,675 438 1997 : 2,190,510 956,010 436 1998 : 2,191,360 953,500 435 1999 : 2,192,070 947,440 432 2000 : 2,172,280 943,090 434 2001 : 2,155,680 941,310 437 2002 : 2,158,090 941,480 436 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ A farm is any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were sold or would normally be sold during the year. Number of Farms: By State and United States, 2000-2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : 2000 : 2001 : 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : 47,000 47,000 47,000 AK : 580 580 590 AZ : 7,500 7,300 7,300 AR : 48,000 48,000 48,500 CA : 87,500 85,000 84,000 CO : 29,500 30,000 30,000 CT : 3,900 3,900 3,900 DE : 2,600 2,500 2,400 FL : 44,000 44,000 44,000 GA : 50,000 50,000 50,000 HI : 5,500 5,300 5,300 ID : 24,500 24,000 24,000 IL : 78,000 76,000 76,000 IN : 64,000 63,000 63,000 IA : 95,000 93,500 92,500 KS : 64,000 63,000 63,000 KY : 90,000 88,000 89,000 LA : 29,500 29,000 29,000 ME : 6,800 6,700 6,700 MD : 12,400 12,400 12,200 MA : 6,100 6,000 6,000 MI : 52,000 52,000 52,000 MN : 79,000 79,000 79,000 MS : 43,000 42,000 43,000 MO : 109,000 108,000 107,000 MT : 27,600 27,500 28,000 NE : 54,000 53,000 52,000 NV : 3,000 3,000 3,000 NH : 3,100 3,100 3,100 NJ : 9,600 9,600 9,600 NM : 15,200 15,000 15,000 NY : 38,000 37,500 37,000 NC : 57,000 56,000 56,000 ND : 30,300 30,300 30,000 OH : 80,000 78,000 78,000 OK : 85,000 86,000 87,000 OR : 40,000 40,000 41,000 PA : 59,000 59,000 59,000 RI : 700 700 700 SC : 24,000 24,000 24,500 SD : 32,500 32,500 32,500 TN : 90,000 91,000 90,000 TX : 226,000 227,000 230,000 UT : 15,500 15,000 15,000 VT : 6,700 6,600 6,600 VA : 49,000 49,000 49,000 WA : 40,000 39,000 39,000 WV : 20,500 20,500 20,500 WI : 77,000 77,000 77,000 WY : 9,200 9,200 9,200 : US : 2,172,280 2,155,680 2,158,090 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Land in Farms: By State and United States, 2000-2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : 2000 : 2001 : 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : AL : 9,000 8,900 8,900 AK : 920 920 920 AZ : 26,700 26,600 26,500 AR : 14,600 14,600 14,600 CA : 27,800 27,700 27,700 CO : 31,600 31,300 31,300 CT : 360 360 360 DE : 580 570 560 FL : 10,300 10,200 10,200 GA : 11,100 11,000 11,000 HI : 1,440 1,440 1,440 ID : 11,900 11,900 11,900 IL : 27,700 27,700 27,700 IN : 15,500 15,400 15,400 IA : 32,800 32,700 32,600 KS : 47,500 47,400 47,400 KY : 13,600 13,600 13,600 LA : 8,100 8,050 8,050 ME : 1,270 1,260 1,260 MD : 2,100 2,100 2,100 MA : 570 560 560 MI : 10,400 10,400 10,400 MN : 28,600 28,500 28,400 MS : 11,100 11,000 11,000 MO : 30,000 29,900 29,800 MT : 56,700 56,700 56,700 NE : 46,400 46,400 46,400 NV : 6,800 6,800 6,800 NH : 420 420 410 NJ : 830 830 820 NM : 44,000 44,000 44,000 NY : 7,700 7,600 7,600 NC : 9,200 9,100 9,100 ND : 39,400 39,400 39,400 OH : 14,900 14,800 14,700 OK : 34,000 34,000 34,000 OR : 17,200 17,200 17,200 PA : 7,700 7,700 7,700 RI : 60 60 60 SC : 4,800 4,800 4,800 SD : 44,000 44,000 44,000 TN : 11,700 11,800 11,700 TX : 130,000 130,000 131,000 UT : 11,600 11,600 11,600 VT : 1,340 1,340 1,340 VA : 8,700 8,700 8,700 WA : 15,700 15,700 15,700 WV : 3,600 3,600 3,600 WI : 16,200 16,100 15,900 WY : 34,600 34,600 34,600 : US : 943,090 941,310 941,480 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :-------------------------------------------------: and : $1,000- :$10,000- :$100,000-:$250,000-:$500,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 :$249,999 :$499,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : CT 2/ : 2,450 3,900 ME 2/ : 4,200 6,700 MA 2/ : 3,200 6,000 NH 2/ : 2,100 3,100 NJ 2/ : 6,400 9,600 NY : 16,800 11,400 4,000 3,000 1,800 37,000 PA : 35,000 14,500 6,900 1,800 800 59,000 RI 2/ : 350 700 VT 2/ : 3,500 6,600 Oth Sts 1/ : 8,880 3,240 1,070 1,210 Total : 74,000 34,780 14,140 5,870 3,810 132,600 : North Central : IL : 26,000 26,000 13,300 7,600 3,100 76,000 IN : 29,500 22,000 6,300 2,900 2,300 63,000 IA : 28,000 36,000 17,000 7,500 4,000 92,500 KS : 22,000 27,500 8,500 2,800 2,200 63,000 MI : 28,500 15,500 4,600 1,600 1,800 52,000 MN : 31,000 28,000 12,500 5,000 2,500 79,000 MO : 61,300 35,400 6,500 2,400 1,400 107,000 NE : 13,000 20,500 10,700 5,000 2,800 52,000 ND : 8,400 12,500 5,800 2,400 900 30,000 OH : 40,000 27,300 6,400 2,800 1,500 78,000 SD : 7,000 14,500 6,500 3,000 1,500 32,500 WI : 37,700 20,800 11,500 4,600 2,400 77,000 Total : 332,400 286,000 109,600 47,600 26,400 802,000 : South : AL : 34,000 8,000 1,600 1,500 1,900 47,000 AR : 26,500 12,000 3,700 3,300 3,000 48,500 DE 2/ : 710 2,400 FL : 26,000 12,000 2,600 1,600 1,800 44,000 GA : 33,000 10,500 3,500 1,500 1,500 50,000 KY : 49,000 33,500 4,300 1,400 800 89,000 LA : 18,300 6,500 1,700 1,300 1,200 29,000 MD 2/ : 5,700 12,200 MS : 31,000 7,500 2,000 1,000 1,500 43,000 NC : 34,000 13,000 3,500 2,400 3,100 56,000 OK : 55,000 26,000 3,500 1,500 1,000 87,000 SC : 18,300 4,000 1,300 400 500 24,500 TN : 69,000 17,000 2,000 1,000 1,000 90,000 TX : 156,000 57,000 10,000 4,000 3,000 230,000 VA : 31,900 13,800 1,400 1,000 900 49,000 WV 2/ : 17,000 20,500 Other States 3/ : 9,530 800 624 736 Total : 605,410 230,330 41,900 22,524 21,936 922,100 : West : AK 2/ : 360 590 AZ 2/ : 4,400 7,300 CA : 40,000 25,000 7,000 3,500 8,500 84,000 CO : 14,800 10,000 2,800 1,300 1,100 30,000 HI 2/ : 3,000 5,300 ID : 12,500 6,600 2,500 1,300 1,100 24,000 MT : 11,500 9,900 4,000 1,800 800 28,000 NV 2/ : 1,600 3,000 NM : 9,000 4,400 700 400 500 15,000 OR : 27,500 9,000 1,400 1,600 1,500 41,000 UT : 8,300 5,000 900 400 400 15,000 WA : 24,600 7,500 2,800 2,000 2,100 39,000 WY 2/ : 3,400 9,200 Other States 4/ : 8,650 2,130 950 900 Total : 160,960 86,050 24,230 13,250 16,900 301,390 : US :1,172,770 637,160 189,870 89,244 69,046 2,158,090 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :-------------------------------------------------: and : $1,000- :$10,000- :$100,000-:$250,000-:$500,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 :$249,999 :$499,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : CT 2/ : 130 360 ME 2/ : 440 1,260 MA 2/ : 220 560 NH 2/ : 200 410 NJ 2/ : 180 820 NY : 1,500 2,300 1,600 1,300 900 7,600 PA : 2,300 2,200 1,700 800 700 7,700 RI 2/ : 20 60 VT 2/ : 350 1,340 Oth Sts 1/ : 1,150 935 535 650 Total : 5,340 5,650 4,235 2,635 2,250 20,110 : North Central : IL : 1,400 5,400 8,300 5,900 6,700 27,700 IN : 1,100 3,900 4,000 3,200 3,200 15,400 IA : 1,700 9,300 11,000 6,700 3,900 32,600 KS : 2,400 15,000 15,000 8,000 7,000 47,400 MI : 1,800 2,800 2,100 1,500 2,200 10,400 MN : 3,000 8,300 7,600 5,300 4,200 28,400 MO : 7,100 11,300 5,800 3,100 2,500 29,800 NE : 1,700 10,800 14,500 9,900 9,500 46,400 ND : 3,500 12,600 12,500 6,800 4,000 39,400 OH : 2,600 4,600 3,000 2,500 2,000 14,700 SD : 2,000 13,500 16,000 8,000 4,500 44,000 WI : 3,000 4,100 4,500 2,700 1,600 15,900 Total : 31,300 101,600 104,300 63,600 51,300 352,100 : South : AL : 3,700 2,300 1,100 800 1,000 8,900 AR : 2,200 3,300 1,850 2,350 4,900 14,600 DE 2/ : 30 560 FL : 1,000 2,200 1,400 1,200 4,400 10,200 GA : 2,800 2,600 1,800 1,300 2,500 11,000 KY : 3,500 5,800 1,900 1,100 1,300 13,600 LA : 1,700 1,900 1,500 1,350 1,600 8,050 MD 2/ : 350 2,100 MS : 3,300 2,600 1,100 1,000 3,000 11,000 NC : 2,200 1,800 1,400 1,500 2,200 9,100 OK : 6,600 13,400 6,700 4,200 3,100 34,000 SC : 2,500 1,150 400 250 500 4,800 TN : 4,500 3,900 1,200 900 1,200 11,700 TX : 22,300 45,700 24,000 16,000 23,000 131,000 VA : 2,300 3,800 800 800 1,000 8,700 WV 2/ : 2,300 3,600 Other States 3/ : 2,135 465 405 575 Total : 61,280 92,585 45,615 33,155 50,275 282,910 : West : AK 2/ : 210 920 AZ 2/ : 1,800 26,500 CA : 2,400 6,900 2,900 2,800 12,700 27,700 CO : 4,000 9,500 10,300 4,500 3,000 31,300 HI 2/ : 105 1,440 ID : 1,500 3,200 2,300 1,800 3,100 11,900 MT : 3,500 15,700 19,000 11,500 7,000 56,700 NV 2/ : 1,000 6,800 NM : 4,000 12,000 9,000 8,000 11,000 44,000 OR : 1,700 4,500 3,500 3,000 4,500 17,200 UT : 1,000 2,300 4,400 1,500 2,400 11,600 WA : 2,500 2,700 3,900 2,800 3,800 15,700 WY 2/ : 3,100 34,600 Other States 4/ : 17,465 11,435 16,205 18,940 Total : 26,815 74,265 66,735 52,105 66,440 286,360 : US : 124,735 274,100 220,885 151,495 170,265 941,480 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2001 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : CT 2/ : 2,450 3,900 ME 2/ : 4,200 6,700 MA 2/ : 3,200 6,000 NH 2/ : 2,100 3,100 NJ 2/ : 6,400 9,600 NY : 17,800 11,000 8,700 37,500 PA : 32,800 16,500 9,700 59,000 RI 2/ : 350 700 VT 2/ : 3,500 6,600 Oth Sts 1/ : 10,600 3,800 Total : 72,800 38,100 22,200 133,100 : North Central : IL : 26,000 25,000 25,000 76,000 IN : 29,000 22,000 12,000 63,000 IA : 27,500 37,000 29,000 93,500 KS : 21,500 28,500 13,000 63,000 MI : 28,500 15,500 8,000 52,000 MN : 30,500 28,500 20,000 79,000 MO : 61,500 36,000 10,500 108,000 NE : 13,000 21,000 19,000 53,000 ND : 8,300 13,000 9,000 30,300 OH : 41,500 25,500 11,000 78,000 SD : 7,000 14,500 11,000 32,500 WI : 35,900 22,700 18,400 77,000 Total : 330,200 289,200 185,900 805,300 : South : AL : 33,000 9,000 5,000 47,000 AR : 26,000 12,000 10,000 48,000 DE 2/ : 740 2,500 FL : 26,000 12,000 6,000 44,000 GA : 32,000 10,500 7,500 50,000 KY : 49,000 32,500 6,500 88,000 LA : 18,000 6,700 4,300 29,000 MD 2/ : 5,900 12,400 MS : 30,000 7,500 4,500 42,000 NC : 34,000 13,000 9,000 56,000 OK : 54,000 26,000 6,000 86,000 SC : 17,700 4,100 2,200 24,000 TN : 69,000 18,000 4,000 91,000 TX : 154,000 56,000 17,000 227,000 VA : 31,900 14,000 3,100 49,000 WV 2/ : 17,000 20,500 Other States 3/ : 7,280 4,480 Total : 598,240 228,580 89,580 916,400 : West : AK 2/ : 350 580 AZ 2/ : 4,400 7,300 CA : 40,000 26,000 19,000 85,000 CO : 14,600 10,500 4,900 30,000 HI 2/ : 3,000 5,300 ID : 12,500 6,600 4,900 24,000 MT : 11,000 10,000 6,500 27,500 NV 2/ : 1,600 3,000 NM : 9,300 4,100 1,600 15,000 OR : 26,500 9,000 4,500 40,000 UT : 8,500 5,000 1,500 15,000 WA : 24,600 7,500 6,900 39,000 WY 2/ : 3,400 9,200 Other States 4/ : 8,130 4,500 Total : 159,750 86,830 54,300 300,880 : US : 1,160,990 642,710 351,980 2,155,680 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2001 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : CT 2/ : 130 360 ME 2/ : 440 1,260 MA 2/ : 220 560 NH 2/ : 200 420 NJ 2/ : 190 830 NY : 1,600 2,200 3,800 7,600 PA : 2,000 2,500 3,200 7,700 RI 2/ : 20 60 VT 2/ : 350 1,340 Oth Sts 1/ : 1,150 2,130 Total : 5,150 5,850 9,130 20,130 : North Central : IL : 1,500 5,200 21,000 27,700 IN : 1,200 3,800 10,400 15,400 IA : 1,700 9,400 21,600 32,700 KS : 2,500 15,900 29,000 47,400 MI : 1,800 2,700 5,900 10,400 MN : 3,000 8,400 17,100 28,500 MO : 7,100 11,300 11,500 29,900 NE : 1,700 10,900 33,800 46,400 ND : 3,500 13,300 22,600 39,400 OH : 2,700 4,500 7,600 14,800 SD : 2,000 13,500 28,500 44,000 WI : 2,900 4,400 8,800 16,100 Total : 31,600 103,300 217,800 352,700 : South : AL : 3,500 2,500 2,900 8,900 AR : 2,100 3,400 9,100 14,600 DE 2/ : 30 570 FL : 1,000 2,200 7,000 10,200 GA : 2,600 2,700 5,700 11,000 KY : 3,600 5,700 4,300 13,600 LA : 1,650 1,900 4,500 8,050 MD 2/ : 400 2,100 MS : 3,400 2,500 5,100 11,000 NC : 2,000 1,800 5,300 9,100 OK : 6,600 13,700 13,700 34,000 SC : 2,500 1,200 1,100 4,800 TN : 4,500 4,000 3,300 11,800 TX : 22,000 45,000 63,000 130,000 VA : 2,400 3,900 2,400 8,700 WV 2/ : 2,300 3,600 Other States 3/ : 1,585 1,955 Total : 60,580 92,085 129,355 282,020 : West : AK 2/ : 210 920 AZ 2/ : 1,800 26,600 CA : 2,500 6,800 18,400 27,700 CO : 3,900 9,400 18,000 31,300 HI 2/ : 105 1,440 ID : 1,500 3,200 7,200 11,900 MT : 3,700 15,900 37,100 56,700 NV 2/ : 1,000 6,800 NM : 4,500 11,500 28,000 44,000 OR : 1,700 4,500 11,000 17,200 UT : 1,100 2,500 8,000 11,600 WA : 2,500 2,700 10,500 15,700 WY 2/ : 3,100 34,600 Other States 4/ : 18,145 46,000 Total : 27,615 74,645 184,200 286,460 : US : 124,945 275,880 540,485 941,310 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2000 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : CT 2/ : 2,450 3,900 ME 2/ : 4,300 6,800 MA 2/ : 3,300 6,100 NH 2/ : 2,100 3,100 NJ 2/ : 6,400 9,600 NY : 18,400 11,200 8,400 38,000 PA : 33,000 16,500 9,500 59,000 RI 2/ : 350 700 VT 2/ : 3,600 6,700 Oth Sts 1/ : 10,300 4,100 Total : 73,900 38,000 22,000 133,900 : North Central : IL : 28,000 26,000 24,000 78,000 IN : 29,700 22,000 12,300 64,000 IA : 27,000 38,000 30,000 95,000 KS : 23,100 27,200 13,700 64,000 MI : 27,500 16,500 8,000 52,000 MN : 30,000 29,000 20,000 79,000 MO : 62,000 36,600 10,400 109,000 NE : 13,500 22,000 18,500 54,000 ND : 8,500 13,100 8,700 30,300 OH : 43,000 27,000 10,000 80,000 SD : 7,000 15,300 10,200 32,500 WI : 34,500 24,500 18,000 77,000 Total : 333,800 297,200 183,800 814,800 : South : AL : 33,000 9,000 5,000 47,000 AR : 26,000 12,000 10,000 48,000 DE 2/ : 800 2,600 FL : 28,500 10,500 5,000 44,000 GA : 32,600 9,900 7,500 50,000 KY : 51,000 33,000 6,000 90,000 LA : 18,500 6,600 4,400 29,500 MD 2/ : 5,900 12,400 MS : 31,000 7,400 4,600 43,000 NC : 34,000 13,000 10,000 57,000 OK : 52,500 26,500 6,000 85,000 SC : 17,700 4,000 2,300 24,000 TN : 68,000 18,000 4,000 90,000 TX : 153,000 56,000 17,000 226,000 VA : 32,000 14,000 3,000 49,000 WV 2/ : 17,000 20,500 Other States 3/ : 7,320 4,480 Total : 601,500 227,220 89,280 918,000 : West : AK 2/ : 350 580 AZ 2/ : 4,500 7,500 CA : 43,500 25,000 19,000 87,500 CO : 14,200 10,300 5,000 29,500 HI 2/ : 3,200 5,500 ID : 12,500 7,200 4,800 24,500 MT : 10,400 10,800 6,400 27,600 NV 2/ : 1,600 3,000 NM : 9,500 4,100 1,600 15,200 OR : 26,500 9,000 4,500 40,000 UT : 9,000 5,000 1,500 15,500 WA : 25,700 7,500 6,800 40,000 WY 2/ : 3,400 9,200 Other States 4/ : 8,230 4,500 Total : 164,350 87,130 54,100 305,580 : US : 1,173,550 649,550 349,180 2,172,280 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, 2000 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : CT 2/ : 130 360 ME 2/ : 450 1,270 MA 2/ : 230 570 NH 2/ : 200 420 NJ 2/ : 190 830 NY : 1,800 2,200 3,700 7,700 PA : 2,100 2,400 3,200 7,700 RI 2/ : 20 60 VT 2/ : 350 1,340 Oth Sts 1/ : 1,300 1,980 Total : 5,470 5,900 8,880 20,250 : North Central : IL : 1,700 5,600 20,400 27,700 IN : 1,300 3,900 10,300 15,500 IA : 1,700 9,400 21,700 32,800 KS : 2,800 15,500 29,200 47,500 MI : 1,900 2,800 5,700 10,400 MN : 3,000 8,500 17,100 28,600 MO : 7,200 11,500 11,300 30,000 NE : 1,800 11,800 32,800 46,400 ND : 3,400 13,800 22,200 39,400 OH : 2,900 4,800 7,200 14,900 SD : 2,000 14,400 27,600 44,000 WI : 2,800 4,700 8,700 16,200 Total : 32,500 106,700 214,200 353,400 : South : AL : 3,500 2,800 2,700 9,000 AR : 2,100 3,400 9,100 14,600 DE 2/ : 33 580 FL : 1,800 2,500 6,000 10,300 GA : 2,900 2,500 5,700 11,100 KY : 3,700 5,800 4,100 13,600 LA : 1,700 1,900 4,500 8,100 MD 2/ : 365 2,100 MS : 3,500 2,500 5,100 11,100 NC : 2,000 1,800 5,400 9,200 OK : 6,700 14,800 12,500 34,000 SC : 2,500 1,200 1,100 4,800 TN : 4,400 4,000 3,300 11,700 TX : 21,000 48,000 61,000 130,000 VA : 2,400 3,900 2,400 8,700 WV 2/ : 2,300 3,600 Other States 3/ : 1,607 1,975 Total : 60,898 96,707 124,875 282,480 : West : AK 2/ : 210 920 AZ 2/ : 1,900 26,700 CA : 2,800 7,000 18,000 27,800 CO : 3,800 10,200 17,600 31,600 HI 2/ : 105 1,440 ID : 1,500 3,300 7,100 11,900 MT : 4,300 16,400 36,000 56,700 NV 2/ : 1,000 6,800 NM : 4,700 11,700 27,600 44,000 OR : 1,700 4,800 10,700 17,200 UT : 1,100 2,800 7,700 11,600 WA : 2,600 2,700 10,400 15,700 WY 2/ : 3,100 34,600 Other States 4/ : 17,985 46,160 Total : 28,815 76,885 181,260 286,960 : US : 127,683 286,192 529,215 943,090 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, HI, NV, and WY. Percent of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Size Farm: By Economic Sales Class, United States, 2000-2002 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Economic : Percent of Total : Sales :-------------------------------: Average Size Farm Class : Farms : Land in Farms : (Acres) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2000 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 26.8 4.4 71 $2,500 - $4,999 : 15.1 4.2 121 $5,000 - $9,999 : 12.1 4.9 176 $10,000 - $19,999 : 10.2 5.6 238 $20,000 - $39,999 : 9.0 8.6 415 $40,000 - $99,999 : 10.7 16.1 653 $100,000 - $249,999 : 9.3 22.8 1,064 $250,000 - $499,999 : 3.8 13.9 1,588 $500,000 + : 3.0 19.5 2,822 : Total : 100.0 100.0 434 : : : 2001 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 25.6 4.3 73 $2,500 - $4,999 : 14.9 4.0 117 $5,000 - $9,999 : 13.4 5.0 163 $10,000 - $24,999 : 12.5 7.5 264 $25,000 - $49,999 : 8.7 8.4 424 $50,000 - $99,999 : 8.6 13.2 675 $100,000 - $249,999 : 9.1 24.1 1,158 $250,000 - $499,999 : 4.0 14.3 1,564 $500,000 - $999,999 : 2.0 10.1 2,205 $1,000,000 + : 1.2 9.1 3,311 : Total : 100.0 100.0 437 : : : 2002 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 26.9 4.5 73 $2,500 - $4,999 : 14.8 3.8 113 $5,000 - $9,999 : 12.7 4.9 169 $10,000 - $24,999 : 12.7 7.7 264 $25,000 - $49,999 : 8.7 9.9 496 $50,000 - $99,999 : 8.1 11.5 619 $100,000 - $249,999 : 8.8 23.5 1,161 $250,000 - $499,999 : 4.1 16.1 1,708 $500,000 - $999,999 : 2.0 8.6 1,872 $1,000,000 + : 1.2 9.5 3,457 : Total : 100.0 100.0 436 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Economic Sales Classes changed for 2001 to standard government groupings. Average Size Farm: By State and United States, 2000-2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : 2000 : 2001 : 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Acres : AL : 191 189 189 AK : 1,586 1,586 1,559 AZ : 3,560 3,644 3,630 AR : 304 304 301 CA : 318 326 330 CO : 1,071 1,043 1,043 CT : 92 92 92 DE : 223 228 233 FL : 234 232 232 GA : 222 220 220 HI : 262 272 272 ID : 486 496 496 IL : 355 364 364 IN : 242 244 244 IA : 345 350 352 KS : 742 752 752 KY : 151 155 153 LA : 275 278 278 ME : 187 188 188 MD : 169 169 172 MA : 93 93 93 MI : 200 200 200 MN : 362 361 359 MS : 258 262 256 MO : 275 277 279 MT : 2,054 2,062 2,025 NE : 859 875 892 NV : 2,267 2,267 2,267 NH : 135 135 132 NJ : 86 86 85 NM : 2,895 2,933 2,933 NY : 203 203 205 NC : 161 163 163 ND : 1,300 1,300 1,313 OH : 186 190 188 OK : 400 395 391 OR : 430 430 420 PA : 131 131 131 RI : 86 86 86 SC : 200 200 196 SD : 1,354 1,354 1,354 TN : 130 130 130 TX : 575 573 570 UT : 748 773 773 VT : 200 203 203 VA : 178 178 178 WA : 393 403 403 WV : 176 176 176 WI : 210 209 206 WY : 3,761 3,761 3,761 : US : 434 437 436 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reliability of Data in this Report Survey Procedures: Data are collected by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) during the June Agricultural Survey using sampling procedures to ensure every farm and ranch has a chance of being selected. NASS uses a multiple frame approach to measuring farms and land in farms. An area sampling frame is built for every state that divides all land into segments. A sample of segments, designed for the state, is selected and enumerated in early June. Highly trained interviewers locate each sampled segment and identify every farm and ranch operating land in the segment and the number of acres in each operation. These data are used to compute estimates of farm numbers and land in farms. Additionally, all farms found in the segments are checked against a list of farms and ranches maintained by NASS to determine if the farm is on the list. Operations not on the list provide a measure of incompleteness of the list. These data are combined with data collected from a sample selected from the list to calculate estimates of farms and land in farms. Estimation Procedures: Data are checked for reasonableness and consistency and summarized for each state. State estimates are aggregated to regional and national totals for Headquarters review. State Statistical Offices perform a thorough review of their survey results and historical data relationships and recommend official estimates. Headquarters establishes regional and national estimates and ensures that state estimates are in balance with the Regional and National numbers. Revision Policy: Estimates are subject to revision the following year and following review of the five-year Census of Agriculture. The basis for revision must be supported by additional data which directly affects the level of the estimate. A historical publication with revisions for 1993-1997 was published January 19, 1999. Reliability: Two types of errors, sampling and nonsampling, are possible in an estimate based on a sample survey. Both types affect the "precision" of the estimates. Sampling error occurs because a complete census is not taken. The sampling error measures the variation in estimates from the average of all possible samples. An estimate of 100 with a sampling error of 1 would mean that chances are 19 out of 20 that the estimates from all possible samples averaged together would be between 98 and 102; which is the survey estimate, plus or minus two times the sampling error. The sampling error expressed as a percent of the estimate is called the relative sampling error. The relative sampling error for the U.S. number of farms and land in farms is just above 1.5 percent. The sampling error for total number of farms and total land in farms is less than the sampling error for each component of the total, such as number of farms by economic sales class. Relative sampling errors by economic sales class generally ranged from 1.2 to 4.7 percent for number of farms and 2.6 to 9.8 percent for land in farms at the U.S. level. Nonsampling errors can occur in complete censuses as well as sample surveys. They are caused by the inability to obtain correct information from each person surveyed, differences in interpreting questions or definitions, and mistakes in coding or processing the data. Special efforts are taken at each step of the survey to minimize nonsampling errors. Terms and Definitions A farm is "any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the year". Government payments are included in sales. Ranches, institutional farms, experimental and research farms, and Indian Reservations are included as farms. Places with the entire acreage enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), or other government programs are counted as farms. The definition of a farm was first established in 1850 and has changed nine times since. The current definition was first used for the 1974 census. Land in farms consists of agricultural land used for crops, pasture, or grazing. Also included is woodland and wasteland not actually under cultivation or used for pasture or grazing, provided it was part of the farm operator's total operation. Land in farms includes acres in the Conservation Reserve, Wetlands Reserve Programs, or other government programs. Land in farms includes land owned and operated as well as land rented from others. Land used rent free is included as land rented from others. All grazing land, except land used under government permits on a per-head basis, is included as land in farms provided it was part of a farm or ranch. Land under the exclusive use of a grazing association is reported by the grazing association and included as land in farms. All land in American Indian reservations used for growing crops or grazing livestock is included as land in farms. Land in reservations not reported by individual American Indians or non-Native Americans is reported in the name of the cooperative group that used the land. In many instances, the entire American Indian reservation is reported as one farm. Economic sales classes are based on the gross value of agricultural products sold. Government program payments from the previous year are also included. Farm Definition History The definition of a farm has remained the same since 1974. Activities included as agriculture, however, have undergone modification in recent years. Beginning in 1995, operations having 5 or more horses or ponies and no other agricultural sales were counted as horse farms. An operation with 1 or more horses with agricultural sales of at least $1,000, qualified as a farm. Two industries, maple syrup and short rotation woody crop farms, were added beginning in 1997 as a result of the new North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). These changes were made to achieve comparability with the Census of Agriculture farm definition. All the changes in the farm definition beginning in 1995 were carried back to 1993 and included in the 1993-1998 estimates. These changes bring comparability between the Census of Agriculture data and the annually published NASS estimates. Because of these changes in the farm definition, the official estimates show a level difference in the number of farms between 1992 and 1993 in some states. To further align the counting of farms with the Census of Agriculture, places with 100 acres or more of pasture only in 2002 were included in farm and land in farm numbers. Released February 28, 2003, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Farms and Land in Farms" call Daryl Brinkman at 202-720-6146, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. The next "Farms and Land in Farms" report will be released February, 2004. 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