United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service ISSN: 1995-2004 Farms and Land in Farms 2016 Summary February 2017 Contents 2016 Farms and Land in Farms Highlights........................................................................... 4 Number of Farms by Economic Sales Class - United States: 2015 and 2016............................................ 6 Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - United States: 2015 and 2016.......................................... 6 Farms and Land in Farms by Economic Sales Class - United States: 2016............................................. 7 Number of Farms and Average Farm Size - United States: 2009-2016.................................................. 7 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size - United States: 2009-2016.................................. 8 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - United States: 2015-2016.......... 8 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size - States and United States: 2015-2016....................... 9 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $1,000-$9,999 - States and United States: 2015-2016....... 10 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $10,000-$99,999 - States and United States: 2015-2016..... 11 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $100,000-$249,999 - States and United States: 2015-2016... 12 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $250,000-$499,999 - States and United States: 2015-2016... 13 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $500,000-$999,999 - States and United States: 2015-2016... 14 Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size, $1,000,000 or more - States and United States: 2015-2016.. 15 Statistical Methodology.......................................................................................... 16 Terms and Definitions............................................................................................ 17 Farm Definition History.......................................................................................... 18 Information Contacts............................................................................................. 19 2016 Farms and Land in Farms Highlights The number of farms in the United States for 2016 is estimated at 2.06 million, down 8 thousand farms from 2015. Total land in farms, at 911 million acres, decreased 1 million acres from 2015. The average farm size for 2016 is 442 acres, up 1 acre from the previous year. Farm numbers and land in farms are differentiated by six economic sales classes. Farms and ranches are classified into these six sales classes by summing the sales of agricultural products and government program payments. Sales class breaks occur at $10,000, $100,000, $250,000, $500,000, and $1,000,000. Producers were asked during the 2016 mid-year surveys to report the value of sales based on production during the 2015 calendar year. Point Farms are farms that did not have the required minimum $1,000 in sales for the year to qualify as a farm, but had sufficient crops and livestock to normally have sales of $1,000 or more. Point Farms are assigned a sales class based on the sum of the agricultural point (dollar) values assigned to the quantity of commodities produced but not sold. The 2012 Census of Agriculture showed that 428,810 farms or 20.3 percent of the 2.11 million farms were Point Farms. These Point Farms operated 63.0 million acres or 6.9 percent of the 914.5 million acres of farmland. Number of farms declined by 8 thousand from 2015. The number of farms in Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999 increased while all other sales classes declined slightly. Fifty percent of all farms had less than $10,000 in sales. Eighty percent of all farms had less than $100,000 in sales. Eight percent of all farms had sales of $500,000 or more. Changes in the number of farms by sales class are: * Sales Class $1,000 - $9,999 at 1.03 million farms, declined by 5 thousand farms. * Sales Class $10,000 - $99,999 at 621 thousand farms, declined by 2 thousand farms. * Sales Class $100,000 - $249,999 at 145 thousand farms, declined by 4 hundred farms. * Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999 at 98 thousand farms, increased by 4 hundred farms. * Sales Class $500,000 - $999,999 at 82 thousand farms, declined by 5 hundred farms. * Sales Class $1,000,000 or more at 82 thousand farms, declined by 2 hundred farms. The percent of all farms by sales class are: * Sales Class $1,000 - $9,999: 50.1% * Sales Class $10,000 - $99,999: 30.1% * Sales Class $100,000 - $249,999: 7.0% * Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999: 4.8% * Sales Class $500,000 - $999,999: 4.0% * Sales Class $1,000,000 or more: 4.0% Land in farms, at 911 million acres, was down 1 million acres from 2015. The biggest changes for 2016 are that producers in Sales Class $250,000-$499,999 operated 1.29 million more acres and those in Sales Class $1,000,000 or more operated 1.01 million fewer acres. Similar to the previous year, in 2016 nearly 31 percent of all farmland was operated by farms with less than $100,000 in sales. Forty-one percent of all farmland was operated by farms with sales of $500,000 or more. Farmland changes by sales class are: * Sales Class $1,000 - $9,999 at 86.9 million acres, declined by 850 thousand acres. * Sales Class $10,000 - $99,999 at 192.0 million acres, increased by 410 thousand acres. * Sales Class $100,000 - $249,999 at 129.9 million acres, declined by 940 thousand acres. * Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999 at 127.1 million acres, increased by 1.29 million acres. * Sales Class $500,000 - $999,999 at 156.5 million acres, increased by 100 thousand acres. * Sales Class $1,000,000 or more at 218.6 million acres, declined by 1.01 million acres. Percent of all farmland by sales class are: * Sales Class $1,000 - $9,999: 9.5% * Sales Class $10,000 - $99,999: 21.1% * Sales Class $100,000 - $249,999: 14.3% * Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999: 14.0% * Sales Class $500,000 - $999,999: 17.2% * Sales Class $1,000,000 or more: 24.0% The average farm size continued to increase in 2016 as the number of farms declined more than land in farms. The overall average size increased by 1 acre to 442 acres per farm. Average farm sizes increased in the $10,000 - $99,999, $250,000 - $499,999, and $500,000 - $999,999 sales classes and decreased in the others. Average farm size by sales class are: * Sales Class $1,000 - $9,999: 84 acres * Sales Class $10,000 - $99,999: 309 acres * Sales Class $100,000 - $249,999: 896 acres * Sales Class $250,000 - $499,999: 1,296 acres * Sales Class $500,000 - $999,999: 1,897 acres * Sales Class $1,000,000 or more: 2,656 acres Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size - United States: 2009-2016 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Year : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : number 1,000 acres acres : 2009 .................: 2,169,660 917,590 423 2010 .................: 2,149,520 915,660 426 2011 .................: 2,131,240 914,420 429 2012 .................: 2,109,810 914,600 433 2013 .................: 2,102,010 914,030 435 2014 .................: 2,085,000 913,000 438 2015 .................: 2,068,000 912,000 441 2016 .................: 2,060,000 911,000 442 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - United States: 2015-2016 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of total : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Economic sales class : Farms : Land in farms : Average farm size :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent percent percent percent acres acres : $ 1,000 - $ 9,999 .: 50.1 50.1 9.6 9.5 85 84 $ 10,000 - $ 99,999 .: 30.1 30.1 21.0 21.1 308 309 $100,000 - $249,999 .: 7.0 7.0 14.3 14.3 900 896 $250,000 - $499,999 .: 4.7 4.8 13.8 14.0 1,288 1,296 $500,000 - $999,999 .: 4.0 4.0 17.1 17.2 1,884 1,897 $1,000,000 or more ..: 4.0 4.0 24.1 24.0 2,662 2,656 : Total1/ .............: 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 441 442 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ May not add due to rounding. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- :------ number ----- -- 1,000 acres -- ---- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 43,200 44,000 8,900 8,900 206 202 Alaska ............: 760 760 830 830 1,092 1,092 Arizona ...........: 19,500 19,600 26,000 25,900 1,333 1,321 Arkansas ..........: 43,500 43,000 13,800 13,700 317 319 California ........: 77,400 76,700 25,400 25,400 328 331 Colorado ..........: 34,200 33,800 31,700 31,700 927 938 Connecticut .......: 6,000 6,000 440 440 73 73 Delaware ..........: 2,500 2,500 500 500 200 200 Florida ...........: 47,300 47,100 9,450 9,410 200 200 Georgia ...........: 41,000 41,800 9,400 9,500 229 227 : Hawaii ............: 7,000 7,000 1,120 1,120 160 160 Idaho .............: 24,400 24,300 11,800 11,800 484 486 Illinois ..........: 73,400 72,200 26,800 26,700 365 370 Indiana ...........: 57,700 57,500 14,700 14,700 255 256 Iowa ..............: 87,500 87,000 30,500 30,500 349 351 Kansas ............: 60,400 59,600 46,000 45,900 762 770 Kentucky ..........: 76,400 76,000 13,000 12,900 170 170 Louisiana .........: 26,900 26,900 7,750 7,750 288 288 Maine .............: 8,200 8,200 1,450 1,450 177 177 Maryland ..........: 12,200 12,300 2,030 2,030 166 165 : Massachusetts .....: 7,800 7,800 520 520 67 67 Michigan ..........: 51,500 51,400 9,950 9,950 193 194 Minnesota .........: 73,600 73,300 25,900 25,900 352 353 Mississippi .......: 36,700 36,200 10,800 10,700 294 296 Missouri ..........: 97,100 96,800 28,300 28,500 291 294 Montana ...........: 27,500 27,400 59,700 59,700 2,171 2,179 Nebraska ..........: 48,700 48,400 45,200 45,200 928 934 Nevada ............: 4,200 4,000 5,950 5,960 1,417 1,490 New Hampshire .....: 4,400 4,400 470 470 107 107 New Jersey ........: 9,100 9,100 720 720 79 79 : New Mexico ........: 24,700 24,600 43,200 43,200 1,749 1,756 New York ..........: 35,500 35,500 7,200 7,300 203 206 North Carolina ....: 48,800 48,000 8,300 8,200 170 171 North Dakota ......: 30,000 29,800 39,200 39,100 1,307 1,312 Ohio ..............: 74,400 74,500 14,000 14,000 188 188 Oklahoma ..........: 78,000 78,100 34,200 34,200 438 438 Oregon ............: 34,600 34,400 16,400 16,300 474 474 Pennsylvania ......: 57,900 58,200 7,700 7,630 133 131 Rhode Island ......: 1,240 1,240 70 70 56 56 South Carolina ....: 24,400 24,500 5,000 5,000 205 204 : South Dakota ......: 31,300 31,000 43,300 43,300 1,383 1,397 Tennessee .........: 67,300 66,600 10,900 10,800 162 162 Texas .............: 242,000 241,500 130,000 129,800 537 537 Utah ..............: 18,100 18,100 11,000 11,000 608 608 Vermont ...........: 7,300 7,300 1,250 1,250 171 171 Virginia ..........: 45,000 44,800 8,100 8,100 180 181 Washington ........: 36,000 35,900 14,700 14,700 408 409 West Virginia .....: 20,900 20,600 3,600 3,600 172 175 Wisconsin .........: 68,900 68,700 14,400 14,400 209 210 Wyoming ...........: 11,600 11,600 30,400 30,300 2,621 2,612 : United States .....:2,068,000 2,060,000 912,000 911,000 441 442 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $1,000-$9,999 :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- :------ number ----- 1,000 acres --- acres --- : Alabama ...........: 25,000 25,700 2,650 2,650 106 103 Alaska ............: 380 380 270 270 711 711 Arizona ...........: 14,700 14,800 700 600 48 41 Arkansas ..........: 21,700 21,500 1,650 1,700 76 79 California ........: 30,400 29,500 1,400 1,300 46 44 Colorado ..........: 18,500 18,300 2,300 2,200 124 120 Connecticut .......: 4,000 4,000 150 150 38 38 Delaware ..........: 870 870 20 20 23 23 Florida ...........: 27,100 27,000 1,240 1,240 46 46 Georgia ...........: 23,000 23,700 2,100 2,400 91 101 : Hawaii ............: 3,850 3,850 100 100 26 26 Idaho .............: 12,200 12,100 800 800 66 66 Illinois ..........: 29,300 28,500 1,300 1,200 44 42 Indiana ...........: 27,500 27,600 960 930 35 34 Iowa ..............: 26,600 26,000 1,100 900 41 35 Kansas ............: 22,000 21,400 2,400 2,400 109 112 Kentucky ..........: 42,000 41,500 2,800 2,800 67 67 Louisiana .........: 16,200 16,200 1,180 1,180 73 73 Maine .............: 5,000 5,000 480 480 96 96 Maryland ..........: 6,500 6,500 300 300 46 46 : Massachusetts .....: 5,000 5,000 210 210 42 42 Michigan ..........: 25,600 25,500 1,050 1,100 41 43 Minnesota .........: 26,500 26,500 2,100 2,100 79 79 Mississippi .......: 21,100 21,300 2,700 2,600 128 122 Missouri ..........: 44,200 44,200 3,700 3,900 84 88 Montana ...........: 11,600 11,500 2,800 2,700 241 235 Nebraska ..........: 12,500 12,000 800 900 64 75 Nevada ............: 2,300 2,150 150 140 65 65 New Hampshire .....: 3,100 3,100 240 240 77 77 New Jersey ........: 5,600 5,600 160 160 29 29 : New Mexico ........: 16,200 16,100 4,200 4,100 259 255 New York ..........: 16,700 16,900 1,450 1,600 87 95 North Carolina ....: 27,500 26,500 1,400 1,300 51 49 North Dakota ......: 9,000 9,100 1,500 1,600 167 176 Ohio ..............: 33,300 33,200 1,600 1,600 48 48 Oklahoma ..........: 41,100 41,000 5,100 5,000 124 122 Oregon ............: 21,000 20,900 1,500 1,440 71 69 Pennsylvania ......: 26,100 26,300 1,800 1,800 69 68 Rhode Island ......: 710 710 20 20 28 28 South Carolina ....: 16,800 17,000 1,800 1,800 107 106 : South Dakota ......: 8,500 8,600 1,200 1,300 141 151 Tennessee .........: 42,400 42,400 2,950 2,900 70 68 Texas .............: 151,000 150,000 17,200 16,500 114 110 Utah ..............: 10,600 10,700 650 700 61 65 Vermont ...........: 4,050 4,050 340 340 84 84 Virginia ..........: 25,800 25,500 1,800 1,800 70 71 Washington ........: 21,500 21,400 1,020 1,020 47 48 West Virginia .....: 14,600 14,400 1,600 1,600 110 111 Wisconsin .........: 30,500 30,400 1,950 1,950 64 64 Wyoming ...........: 5,000 5,000 900 900 180 180 : United States .....:1,036,660 1,031,410 87,790 86,940 85 84 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $10,000-$99,999 :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----- number ---- -- 1,000 acres -- ---- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 13,300 13,300 3,400 3,450 256 259 Alaska ............: 290 290 450 450 1,552 1,552 Arizona ...........: 3,350 3,350 8,200 8,000 2,448 2,388 Arkansas ..........: 14,100 13,700 3,600 3,600 255 263 California ........: 26,400 26,200 4,200 4,400 159 168 Colorado ..........: 10,000 10,000 7,000 6,900 700 690 Connecticut .......: 1,550 1,550 110 110 71 71 Delaware ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Florida ...........: 14,600 14,500 1,900 1,850 130 128 Georgia ...........: 10,500 10,400 2,200 2,100 210 202 : Hawaii ............: 2,600 2,600 260 260 100 100 Idaho .............: 7,000 7,000 2,050 2,050 293 293 Illinois ..........: 18,300 18,300 2,700 2,900 148 158 Indiana ...........: 15,500 15,300 1,830 1,900 118 124 Iowa ..............: 23,600 23,800 3,100 3,300 131 139 Kansas ............: 21,500 21,300 8,000 8,300 372 390 Kentucky ..........: 27,400 27,600 4,700 4,700 172 170 Louisiana .........: 7,300 7,300 1,800 1,800 247 247 Maine .............: 2,400 2,400 400 400 167 167 Maryland ..........: 3,500 3,600 400 400 114 111 : Massachusetts .....: 2,000 2,000 140 140 70 70 Michigan ..........: 14,700 14,600 1,650 1,600 112 110 Minnesota .........: 21,900 21,600 3,700 3,600 169 167 Mississippi .......: 10,800 10,000 2,900 2,800 269 280 Missouri ..........: 38,300 38,500 8,700 9,300 227 242 Montana ...........: 7,800 7,900 8,800 8,900 1,128 1,127 Nebraska ..........: 13,900 13,500 4,800 4,700 345 348 Nevada ............: 850 830 280 270 329 325 New Hampshire .....: 1,050 1,050 150 150 143 143 New Jersey ........: 2,350 2,350 160 160 68 68 : New Mexico ........: 6,200 6,200 11,300 11,100 1,823 1,790 New York ..........: 11,600 11,200 1,800 1,600 155 143 North Carolina ....: 12,800 12,800 1,500 1,500 117 117 North Dakota ......: 6,200 7,100 2,600 3,400 419 479 Ohio ..............: 25,300 25,300 2,650 2,650 105 105 Oklahoma ..........: 28,000 28,100 11,300 11,400 404 406 Oregon ............: 9,100 9,000 2,860 2,830 314 314 Pennsylvania ......: 19,400 19,800 2,300 2,280 119 115 Rhode Island ......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Carolina ....: 5,500 5,400 1,300 1,300 236 241 : South Dakota ......: 9,400 9,300 4,900 4,900 521 527 Tennessee .........: 20,200 19,500 3,700 3,600 183 185 Texas .............: 71,000 71,000 41,700 41,000 587 577 Utah ..............: 5,500 5,500 1,900 2,000 345 364 Vermont ...........: 2,100 2,100 320 320 152 152 Virginia ..........: 14,200 14,200 2,800 2,800 197 197 Washington ........: 8,400 8,400 1,900 1,900 226 226 West Virginia .....: 5,400 5,400 1,400 1,400 259 259 Wisconsin .........: 21,000 20,900 2,900 2,850 138 136 Wyoming ...........: 3,700 3,800 4,800 4,600 1,297 1,211 : Other States 1/ ...: 1,010 1,010 60 60 (NA) (NA) : United States .....: 622,850 620,830 191,570 191,980 308 309 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (NA) Not available. 1/ Includes data withheld above. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $100,000-$249,999 :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----- number ---- -- 1,000 acres -- ----- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 1,100 1,150 750 800 682 696 Alaska ............: 50 50 70 70 1,400 1,400 Arizona ...........: 590 570 11,200 11,300 18,983 19,825 Arkansas ..........: 1,600 1,900 1,000 1,200 625 632 California ........: 6,100 6,300 3,700 3,700 607 587 Colorado ..........: 2,600 2,500 5,400 5,500 2,077 2,200 Connecticut .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Delaware ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Florida ...........: 2,300 2,250 940 920 409 409 Georgia ...........: 1,400 1,500 630 630 450 420 : Hawaii ............: 280 280 160 160 571 571 Idaho .............: 1,900 1,900 1,650 1,650 868 868 Illinois ..........: 8,500 8,500 2,900 3,100 341 365 Indiana ...........: 5,300 5,300 1,580 1,540 298 291 Iowa ..............: 10,400 10,300 3,000 2,900 288 282 Kansas ............: 6,500 6,400 7,200 6,900 1,108 1,078 Kentucky ..........: 3,300 3,300 1,200 1,200 364 364 Louisiana .........: 850 800 520 520 612 650 Maine .............: 340 340 100 100 294 294 Maryland ..........: 600 600 230 230 383 383 : Massachusetts .....: 380 380 50 50 132 132 Michigan ..........: 4,100 4,200 1,050 1,100 256 262 Minnesota .........: 8,500 8,600 2,500 2,600 294 302 Mississippi .......: 1,000 1,100 600 700 600 636 Missouri ..........: 7,400 6,200 4,400 3,900 595 629 Montana ...........: 3,100 3,150 9,700 9,800 3,129 3,111 Nebraska ..........: 7,300 7,600 5,900 5,900 808 776 Nevada ............: 270 260 600 580 2,222 2,231 New Hampshire .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New Jersey ........: 450 450 80 80 178 178 : New Mexico ........: 1,050 1,050 7,600 7,700 7,238 7,333 New York ..........: 3,300 3,600 850 950 258 264 North Carolina ....: 1,800 2,000 600 700 333 350 North Dakota ......: 3,600 3,100 3,800 3,700 1,056 1,194 Ohio ..............: 7,100 7,200 1,950 1,950 275 271 Oklahoma ..........: 4,450 4,450 5,750 5,700 1,292 1,281 Oregon ............: 1,700 1,700 2,900 2,900 1,706 1,706 Pennsylvania ......: 5,600 5,500 1,050 1,040 188 189 Rhode Island ......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Carolina ....: 600 600 270 270 450 450 : South Dakota ......: 4,200 4,100 5,300 5,200 1,262 1,268 Tennessee .........: 2,000 2,000 800 850 400 425 Texas .............: 8,700 8,700 21,600 20,500 2,483 2,356 Utah ..............: 900 800 1,400 1,300 1,556 1,625 Vermont ...........: 490 490 140 140 286 286 Virginia ..........: 1,950 2,050 1,000 1,000 513 488 Washington ........: 2,150 2,200 1,550 1,550 721 705 West Virginia .....: 400 350 240 240 600 686 Wisconsin .........: 7,300 7,300 1,900 1,950 260 267 Wyoming ...........: 1,300 1,300 4,900 5,000 3,769 3,846 : Other States 1/ ...: 530 530 100 100 (NA) (NA) : United States .....: 145,330 144,900 130,810 129,870 900 896 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (NA) Not available. 1/ Includes data withheld above. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $250,000-$499,999 :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- number ---- -- 1,000 acres -- ----- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 900 950 450 400 500 421 Alaska ............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arizona ...........: 230 240 2,600 2,600 11,304 10,833 Arkansas ..........: 1,200 1,000 650 600 542 600 California ........: 4,600 4,700 2,500 2,400 543 511 Colorado ..........: 1,300 1,300 5,800 5,800 4,462 4,462 Connecticut .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Delaware ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Florida ...........: 1,250 1,300 970 1,000 776 769 Georgia ...........: 900 1,000 470 470 522 470 : Hawaii ............: 120 120 60 60 500 500 Idaho .............: 1,300 1,300 1,400 1,400 1,077 1,077 Illinois ..........: 7,300 7,000 4,500 4,400 616 629 Indiana ...........: 3,900 4,000 2,100 2,100 538 525 Iowa ..............: 9,700 9,700 5,100 4,900 526 505 Kansas ............: 4,200 4,300 7,400 7,500 1,762 1,744 Kentucky ..........: 1,500 1,500 1,000 900 667 600 Louisiana .........: 550 650 450 550 818 846 Maine .............: 220 220 110 110 500 500 Maryland ..........: 650 650 250 250 385 385 : Massachusetts .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Michigan ..........: 2,900 2,900 1,250 1,200 431 414 Minnesota .........: 6,300 6,200 3,300 3,300 524 532 Mississippi .......: 800 800 500 500 625 625 Missouri ..........: 3,000 3,500 3,400 3,400 1,133 971 Montana ...........: 2,500 2,450 12,200 12,300 4,880 5,020 Nebraska ..........: 5,300 5,600 7,500 7,700 1,415 1,375 Nevada ............: 440 420 970 970 2,205 2,310 New Hampshire .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New Jersey ........: 270 270 90 90 333 333 : New Mexico ........: 550 500 6,300 6,300 11,455 12,600 New York ..........: 1,800 1,700 800 750 444 441 North Carolina ....: 1,500 1,600 700 700 467 438 North Dakota ......: 3,000 3,000 5,100 5,300 1,700 1,767 Ohio ..............: 3,800 3,800 1,900 1,900 500 500 Oklahoma ..........: 2,050 2,100 4,550 4,600 2,220 2,190 Oregon ............: 1,000 1,000 2,290 2,280 2,290 2,280 Pennsylvania ......: 3,600 3,500 950 960 264 274 Rhode Island ......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Carolina ....: 300 300 230 230 767 767 : South Dakota ......: 3,300 3,100 7,200 7,000 2,182 2,258 Tennessee .........: 950 950 700 700 737 737 Texas .............: 4,600 4,800 16,700 18,300 3,630 3,813 Utah ..............: 600 600 1,550 1,450 2,583 2,417 Vermont ...........: 350 350 150 150 429 429 Virginia ..........: 1,200 1,200 700 700 583 583 Washington ........: 1,250 1,200 2,250 2,250 1,800 1,875 West Virginia .....: 150 150 110 120 733 800 Wisconsin .........: 4,900 4,800 2,050 2,050 418 427 Wyoming ...........: 850 800 6,400 6,300 7,529 7,875 : Other States 1/ ...: 560 560 150 150 (NA) (NA) : United States .....: 97,640 98,080 125,800 127,090 1,288 1,296 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (NA) Not available. 1/ Includes data withheld above. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $500,000-$999,999 :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- number ---- -- 1,000 acres -- ----- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 1,500 1,500 500 550 333 367 Alaska ............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arizona ...........: 300 300 400 500 1,333 1,667 Arkansas ..........: 1,500 1,400 1,300 1,100 867 786 California ........: 3,200 3,250 2,600 2,800 813 862 Colorado ..........: 900 800 5,400 5,400 6,000 6,750 Connecticut .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Delaware ..........: 370 370 100 100 270 270 Florida ...........: 820 820 650 600 793 732 Georgia ...........: 2,900 2,900 1,680 1,620 579 559 : Hawaii ............: 70 70 240 240 3,429 3,429 Idaho .............: 800 800 1,900 2,000 2,375 2,500 Illinois ..........: 5,500 5,400 6,300 6,100 1,145 1,130 Indiana ...........: 3,000 2,900 2,880 2,930 960 1,010 Iowa ..............: 9,900 10,000 8,700 8,900 879 890 Kansas ............: 3,000 3,000 9,600 9,600 3,200 3,200 Kentucky ..........: 1,100 1,000 1,340 1,290 1,218 1,290 Louisiana .........: 900 850 1,000 900 1,111 1,059 Maine .............: 110 110 90 90 818 818 Maryland ..........: 400 400 250 260 625 650 : Massachusetts .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Michigan ..........: 2,350 2,350 1,800 1,800 766 766 Minnesota .........: 5,100 5,100 4,800 4,900 941 961 Mississippi .......: 1,100 1,100 950 1,000 864 909 Missouri ..........: 2,300 2,400 4,000 4,000 1,739 1,667 Montana ...........: 1,500 1,450 13,600 13,500 9,067 9,310 Nebraska ..........: 4,900 5,000 9,800 9,800 2,000 1,960 Nevada ............: 180 180 1,050 1,100 5,833 6,111 New Hampshire .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New Jersey ........: 210 210 80 80 381 381 : New Mexico ........: 370 370 8,100 8,300 21,892 22,432 New York ..........: 1,000 1,000 650 650 650 650 North Carolina ....: 1,600 1,600 950 950 594 594 North Dakota ......: 4,700 4,200 10,800 10,100 2,298 2,405 Ohio ..............: 2,850 2,850 2,400 2,400 842 842 Oklahoma ..........: 1,350 1,400 4,000 3,900 2,963 2,786 Oregon ............: 850 800 2,650 2,650 3,118 3,313 Pennsylvania ......: 1,950 1,850 750 750 385 405 Rhode Island ......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Carolina ....: 400 400 450 450 1,125 1,125 : South Dakota ......: 3,500 3,500 11,300 11,500 3,229 3,286 Tennessee .........: 850 850 850 900 1,000 1,059 Texas .............: 3,400 3,700 15,100 15,400 4,441 4,162 Utah ..............: 240 240 4,500 4,550 18,750 18,958 Vermont ...........: 160 160 90 90 563 563 Virginia ..........: 1,050 1,050 830 830 790 790 Washington ........: 1,050 1,050 2,930 2,880 2,790 2,743 West Virginia .....: 170 170 110 110 647 647 Wisconsin .........: 2,850 2,900 2,050 2,050 719 707 Wyoming ...........: 500 470 6,800 6,800 13,600 14,468 : Other States 1/ ...: 260 260 80 80 (NA) (NA) : United States .....: 83,010 82,480 156,400 156,500 1,884 1,897 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (NA) Not available. 1/ Includes data withheld above. Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size by Economic Sales Class - States and United States: 2015-2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic sales class: $1,000,000 or more :----------------------------------------------------------- : Number of farms : Land in farms : Average farm size State :----------------------------------------------------------- : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 : 2015 : 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- number ---- -- 1,000 acres -- ----- acres ---- : Alabama ...........: 1,400 1,400 1,150 1,050 821 750 Alaska ............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arizona ...........: 330 340 2,900 2,900 8,788 8,529 Arkansas ..........: 3,400 3,500 5,600 5,500 1,647 1,571 California ........: 6,700 6,750 11,000 10,800 1,642 1,600 Colorado ..........: 900 900 5,800 5,900 6,444 6,556 Connecticut .......: 90 90 100 100 1,111 1,111 Delaware ..........: 380 380 270 270 711 711 Florida ...........: 1,230 1,230 3,750 3,800 3,049 3,089 Georgia ...........: 2,300 2,300 2,320 2,280 1,009 991 : Hawaii ............: 80 80 300 300 3,750 3,750 Idaho .............: 1,200 1,200 4,000 3,900 3,333 3,250 Illinois ..........: 4,500 4,500 9,100 9,000 2,022 2,000 Indiana ...........: 2,500 2,400 5,350 5,300 2,140 2,208 Iowa ..............: 7,300 7,200 9,500 9,600 1,301 1,333 Kansas ............: 3,200 3,200 11,400 11,200 3,563 3,500 Kentucky ..........: 1,100 1,100 1,960 2,010 1,782 1,827 Louisiana .........: 1,100 1,100 2,800 2,800 2,545 2,545 Maine .............: 130 130 270 270 2,077 2,077 Maryland ..........: 550 550 600 590 1,091 1,073 : Massachusetts .....: 80 80 50 50 625 625 Michigan ..........: 1,850 1,850 3,150 3,150 1,703 1,703 Minnesota .........: 5,300 5,300 9,500 9,400 1,792 1,774 Mississippi .......: 1,900 1,900 3,150 3,100 1,658 1,632 Missouri ..........: 1,900 2,000 4,100 4,000 2,158 2,000 Montana ...........: 1,000 950 12,600 12,500 12,600 13,158 Nebraska ..........: 4,800 4,700 16,400 16,200 3,417 3,447 Nevada ............: 160 160 2,900 2,900 18,125 18,125 New Hampshire .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New Jersey ........: 220 220 150 150 682 682 : New Mexico ........: 330 380 5,700 5,700 17,273 15,000 New York ..........: 1,100 1,100 1,650 1,750 1,500 1,591 North Carolina ....: 3,600 3,500 3,150 3,050 875 871 North Dakota ......: 3,500 3,300 15,400 15,000 4,400 4,545 Ohio ..............: 2,050 2,150 3,500 3,500 1,707 1,628 Oklahoma ..........: 1,050 1,050 3,500 3,600 3,333 3,429 Oregon ............: 950 1,000 4,200 4,200 4,421 4,200 Pennsylvania ......: 1,250 1,250 850 800 680 640 Rhode Island ......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Carolina ....: 800 800 950 950 1,188 1,188 : South Dakota ......: 2,400 2,400 13,400 13,400 5,583 5,583 Tennessee .........: 900 900 1,900 1,850 2,111 2,056 Texas .............: 3,300 3,300 17,700 18,100 5,364 5,485 Utah ..............: 260 260 1,000 1,000 3,846 3,846 Vermont ...........: 150 150 210 210 1,400 1,400 Virginia ..........: 800 800 970 970 1,213 1,213 Washington ........: 1,650 1,650 5,050 5,100 3,061 3,091 West Virginia .....: 180 130 140 130 778 1,000 Wisconsin .........: 2,350 2,400 3,550 3,550 1,511 1,479 Wyoming ...........: 250 230 6,600 6,700 26,400 29,130 : Other States 1/ ...: 40 40 40 40 (NA) (NA) : United States .....: 82,510 82,300 219,630 218,620 2,662 2,656 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (NA) Not available. 1/ Includes data withheld above. Statistical Methodology 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 sampling frame approach to count farms and measure land in farms. An Area Sampling Frame that divides all land into segments is built for every State except Alaska. A sample of segments is selected in each State except Alaska and Hawaii 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 summaries of farm numbers and acres of 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 found in the Area Frame sample that are not on the list provide a measure of incompleteness of the list. The summarized totals for these non-overlap (or not-on-list) operations are combined with summarized totals collected from a sample selected from the list to calculate additional indications 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 national totals for Headquarters review. Field Offices perform a thorough review of their survey results and historical data relationships and recommend official estimates. Headquarters establishes national estimates and ensures that state estimates are in balance with the 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 affect the level of the estimate. Reliability: Two types of errors, sampling and non-sampling, are possible in an estimate based on a sample survey. Both types can affect the quality 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. In 2016, the relative sampling error for the United States number of farms is 1.6 percent and land in farms is 2.2 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 ranged from 2.3 to 6.4 percent for number of farms and 2.8 to 9.1 percent for land in farms at the United States level. Non-sampling 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 non-sampling 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), and other government conservation 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 CRP, WRP, and other government conservation 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 are also included. Point Farms are places that did not have $1,000 of reported sales for the year, but had sufficient crops and livestock to normally have sales of $1,000 or more. 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. The handling of Indian reservation land was changed in 2002 to provide some accounting for individual farms. Minimum Criteria for "FARM" Definition, 1840 - Present and Enumeration of Apiaries and Fur Farms Year Acres in Value of Value of Sales Required Apiaries Place Agricultural of some and Fur Farms Products Agricultural Agricultural Enumerated (Produced) Products Operations 1974 - Present - - - - $1,000 or more - - - - 1959 Less than 10 - - $250 or more - - - - 10 or more - - $50 or more - - - - 1954 Less than 3 - - $150 or more - - - - 3 or more $150 or more - - - - - - 1950 Less than 3 - - $150 or more - - Apiaries 3 or more $150 or more - - - - Fur Farms 1935 - 1945 Less than 3 $250 or more - - - - Apiaries 3 or more - - - - X Fur Farms 1930 Less than 3 $250 or more - - - - Apiaries 3 or more - - - - X - - 1925 Less than 3 $250 or more - - - - - - 3 or more - - - - X - - 1910 - 1925 Less than 3 $250 or more - - - - Apiaries 3 or more - - - - X - - 1900 Less than 3 - - - - - - Apiaries 3 or more - - - - X - - 1870 - 1890 Less than 3 - - $500 or more - - Apiaries 3 or more - - - - X - - 1860 - - - - - - - - - - 1850 - - $100 or more - - - - Apiaries 1840 - - - - - - - - - - Historic Estimates: Final estimates of Farms and Land in Farms in earlier years are available in Statistical Bulletins, No.1030 for 2008-2012, No. 1018 for 2003-2007, No. 991 for 1998-2002, No. 955 for 1993-97, No. 895 for 1988- 92, No. 792 for 1979-87, SpSy3 for 1975-80, No. 594 for 1969-75, No. 507 for 1959-70, No. 316 for number of farm estimates for 1910-59 and land in farms estimates for 1950-59. Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity statisticians in the Environmental, Economics and Demographics Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. Email inquiries may be sent to nass@nass.usda.gov. Jody McDaniel, Chief, Environmental, Economics and Demographics Branch....... (202) 720-6146 Tony Dorn, Head, Economics Section........................................... (202) 690-3223 Rachel Antzak - Cash Receipts, Land Values................................ (202) 720-5446 Daryl Brinkman - Prices Received, Prices Received Indexes, Parity Prices.. (202) 720-8844 Kuan Chen - Prices, Prices Research....................................... (202) 690-3347 Liana Cuffman - Prices Paid, Prices Paid Indexes.......................... (202) 690-3229 Stephen Habets - Production Expenditures.................................. (202) 720-9168 Joe Hagedorn - Cash Rents, Grazing Fees................................... (202) 690-3231 Ben Johnson - Economics and Demographics Processing....................... (202) 690-3225 Michael Mathison - Farm Expenditures...................................... (202) 720-3243 Scott Shimmin, Head, Environmental and Demographics Section.................. (202) 720-0684 Stephanie Brennan - Field Crops Chemical Use ............................. (202) 690-0392 Natasha Bruton - Current Agricultural Industrial Reports.................. (202) 720-7644 Courtney Charles - Current Agricultural Industrial Reports................ (202) 690-3226 Ryan Cowen - Farms, Land in Farms, Census of Agriculture.................. (202) 690-3233 Doug Farmer - Vegetable Chemical Use...................................... (202) 720-7492 Virginia Harris - Census of Agriculture................................... (502) 582-5257 Megan Lipke - Census of Agriculture....................................... (202) 720-5581 Dominique Sims - Census of Agriculture.................................... (202) 690-4752 Theresa Varner - Farm Labor, Chemical Use................................. (202) 690-2284 Access to NASS Reports For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways: All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: www.nass.usda.gov Both national and state specific reports are available via a free e- mail subscription. To set-up this free subscription, visit www.nass.usda.gov and click on "National" or "State" in upper right corner above "search" box to create an account and select the reports you would like to receive. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Agricultural Statistics Hotline at (800) 727-9540, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, or e-mail: nass@nass.usda.gov. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination against its customers, employees, and applicants for employment on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, reprisal, and where applicable, political beliefs, marital status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program, or protected genetic information in employment or in any program or activity conducted or funded by the Department. (Not all prohibited bases will apply to all programs and/or employment activities.) If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form (PDF), found online at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at program.intake@usda.gov.