Farms Getting Bigger, But Smaller Too; Kickoff to National FFA Week

The annual USDA Farm and Land in Farms report shows the nation’s farms are getting bigger, and the number of farms is getting smaller. The report shows the U.S. lost 18,000 farms last year compared to 2014 with a total estimated 2.07 million farms in the United States. The report shows that U.S. farmland decreased in 2015 by one million acre’s now totaling 912 million acres. The average farm size increased by three acres to 441 and almost 31 percent of all farmland was operated by farms with less than $100,000 in sales. Texas has the most farms with more than 245,000. Not surprising, Alaska had the least amount of farms reported at 760.

National FFA Week kicked off Saturday and runs to the 27th. The week-long tradition began in 1947 when the National FFA Board of Directors designated the week of George Washington's birthday as National FFA Week. The designation was made in recognition of Washington’s legacy as an agriculturist and farmer. The first National FFA Week was held in 1948.