普查显示美国农场数目减少

Report: Census of Agriculture shows fewer US farms

By RFD-TV News Staff - email

 
Credit: USDA ERS
 

WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD-TV) A study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service has found that the number of U.S. farms has decreased in the past seven years.
According to data from the Census of Agriculture, in 2012 the U.S. had 2.1 million farms, a 4.3 percent drop from the previous census in 2007.

Between 2007 and 2012, acreage also diminished from 922 million acres to 915 million.

Since 1935, the number of U.S. farms has been on the decline, reflecting growing productivity and increased non-farm employment opportunities.

Below is the full summary from the ERS:

"After peaking at 6.8 million farms in 1935, the number of U.S. farms fell sharply until leveling off in the early 1970s. Falling farm numbers during this period reflected growing productivity in agriculture and increased nonfarm employment opportunities. Because the amount of farmland did not decrease as much as the number of farms, the remaining farms have more acreage—on average, about 430 acres in 2012 versus 155 acres in 1935. Preliminary data from the recently released Census of Agriculture show that in 2012, the United States had 2.1 million farms–down 4.3 percent from the previous Census in 2007. Between 2007 and 2012, the amount of land in farms in the United States continued a slow downward trend, declining from 922 million acres to 915 million."