The recent release of some of the 2022 Census of Agriculture data indicates Virginia is trending with the nation in terms of fewer farms and less farm acreage than in 2017, when the previous census was conducted.
In 2022 there were 38,995 farms in the commonwealth compared to 43,225 in 2017. Farm acreage was 7.3 million in 2022, down from almost 7.8 million in 2017. The agriculture census definition of 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 census year.
In Virginia, the number of small and medium farms—those under 1,000 acres—all decreased in numbers. But farms from 1,000 to 5,000 or more acres increased slightly—from 1,340 in 2017 to 1,367 five years later.
Nationally, the number of farms and farm acreage also decreased from 2017 to 2022. According to the 2022 census, there were 141,733 fewer farms in 2022 than in 2017. The number of farm acres fell to 880 million, a loss of more than 20 million acres in five years.
Craig County bucked the trend a little by adding seven farms to its total, moving from 179 in 2017 to 186 in 2022. The county also reported an additional 2,459 acres in farmland. The average size of a Craig County farm in 2022 was 247 acres, also an increase from 243 acres reported in 2017.
“I am surprised that we have a gain of 7 farms here in the county,” Mary Hunter, member of the Craig County Farm Bureau Board, wrote in an email. “My take on that is that these are mostly small homestead or hobby farms as I am not aware of any major farms that have been added recently. We have gone from 3 dairy farms down to 1 which is a major loss to the county and farming industry.”
Local farmers deal in cattle mostly, with 114 farms reporting cattle, both beef and milking cows, as inventory. The Census, which dates to 2022, reports 5 farms with milk cows in Craig County, most likely small family farms and not significant dairy operations. County farmers also sell hogs, sheep, and poultry.
Most of Craig County’s farms are family owned, and range from 7 farms that are less than 10 acres to 3 farms that encompass 1,000 acres or more, according to the 2022 numbers. Most area farms fall in the 50 to 179 acres range.
“We continue to see that our children and grandchildren aren’t interested in continuing to work the family farms, so the farmland is split up into smaller parcels and sold,” Hunter wrote. “This may be where the increase in farms is showing up on paper as the large farms are going away and as the land is sold the families purchasing them are looking to raise their own food and possibly sell their leftover products locally.”
This is a trend that is being seen nationwide. But family farms remain important.
“Family farms not only help drive the economy, they allow the rest of the nation the freedom to pursue their dreams without worrying about whether there will be enough food in their pantries,” said American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall.
Average farm production expenses, which include things like equipment, crop inputs, livestock, animal feed, labor and more, increased in Craig County as well as the state and the nation.
The census also found that the average age of farmers continues to increase. In the commonwealth, the average age of a farmer in the 2012 Census of Agriculture findings was 57.2. Ten years later, it had increased to 59.2.
Additional information from the Census is scheduled to be released from March through June.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service conducts the Census of Agriculture every five years. The data collected provides valuable insights into demographics, economics, land use and activities on U.S. farms and ranches.
In addition to tracking the number of farms and amount of farmland, the census tracks the value of agricultural products, the use of renewable energy-producing systems and characteristics of farm operators themselves.
“The Census of Agriculture provides critical information for USDA in its work to ensure farms of all types and sizes have the support that they need,” said Tony Banks, senior assistant director of agriculture, development and innovation for Virginia Farm Bureau Federation. “The data provides a very important snapshot of agriculture’s production and economic health, and is useful in documenting trends that can help direct state and national public policy.”
The first Census of Agriculture was conducted by the Census Bureau in 1840 in 26 states and the District of Columbia. However, the history of collecting data on U.S. agriculture dates back as far as President George Washington, who kept meticulous statistical records describing his own and other farms. In 1791, President Washington wrote to farmers requesting information on land values, crop acreages, crop yields, livestock prices, and taxes. Washington compiled the results on an area which today lies in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. In effect, Washington’s inquiry was an attempt to fulfill the need for sound agricultural data for a nation that was heavily reliant on the success of agriculture. Such informal inquiries worked while the nation was young, but were insufficient as the country expanded.
In 1997, the agriculture census was transferred from the Census Bureau to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. The 2022 census is the 30th in the series and the sixth conducted by NASS.
The full report may be reviewed online at https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_1_State_Level/Virginia/vav1.pdf
— AJF, Special to The New Castle Record
