Agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
is a major industry in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, which is a net exporter of food. As of the 2017
census of agriculture
A census of agriculture is a statistical operation for collecting, processing and disseminating data on the structure of agriculture, covering the whole or a significant part of a country. Typical structural data collected in a census of agricultur ...
, there were 2.04 million farms, covering an area of , an average of per farm.
Agriculture in the United States is highly mechanized, with an average of only one farmer or farm laborer required per square kilometer of farmland for agricultural production.
Although agricultural activity occurs in every
U.S. state, it is particularly concentrated in the
Great Plains, a vast expanse of flat arable land in the center of the nation, in the region west of the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
and east of the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
. The eastern wetter half is a major corn and soybean producing region known as the
Corn Belt, and the western drier half is known as the
Wheat Belt because of its high rate of wheat production. The
Central Valley of California
The Central Valley is a broad, elongated, flat valley that dominates the interior of California. It is wide and runs approximately from north-northwest to south-southeast, inland from and parallel to the Pacific coast of the state. It cov ...
produces
fruits,
vegetables, and
nuts. The
American South has historically been a large producer of
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
,
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
, and
rice, but it has declined in agricultural production over the past century.
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...
leads the nation in citrus production and is the number two producer of oranges in the world behind only
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.
The U.S. has led developments in seed improvement, such as
hybridization
Hybridization (or hybridisation) may refer to:
*Hybridization (biology), the process of combining different varieties of organisms to create a hybrid
*Orbital hybridization, in chemistry, the mixing of atomic orbitals into new hybrid orbitals
*Nu ...
, and in expanding uses for crops from the work of
George Washington Carver to
bioplastics and
biofuels. The
mechanization of farming and
intensive farming have been major themes in
U.S. history, including
John Deere's steel plow,
Cyrus McCormick's
mechanical reaper,
Eli Whitney's
cotton gin, and the widespread success of the
Fordson
Fordson was a brand name of tractors and trucks. It was used on a range of mass-produced general-purpose tractors manufactured by Henry Ford & Son Inc from 1917 to 1920, by Ford Motor Company (U.S.) and Ford Motor Company Ltd (U.K.) from 19 ...
tractor and the
combine harvester. Modern agriculture in the U.S. ranges from
hobby farm
A hobby farm (also called a lifestyle block in New Zealand, or acreage living or rural residential in Australia) is a smallholding or small farm that is maintained without expectation of being a primary source of income. Some are held merely to ...
s and small-scale producers to large
commercial farms that cover thousands of acres of cropland or
rangeland.
History
Corn,
turkeys,
tomatoes,
potatoes,
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
s, and
sunflower seeds constitute some of the major holdovers from the
agricultural endowment of the Americas.
Colonists had more access to land in the colonial United States than they did in Europe. The organization of labor was complex including free persons, slaves and indentured servants depending on the regions where either slaves or poor landless laborers were available to work on family farms.
European agricultural practices greatly affected the
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
landscape. Colonists brought livestock over from Europe which caused many changes to the land. Grazing animals required a lot of land and food and the act of grazing itself destroyed native grasses, which were being replaced by European species. New species of weeds were introduced and began to thrive as they were capable of withstanding the grazing of animals, whereas native species could not.
[Cronon, William. ''Changes in the Land : Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of New England''. New York: Hill & Wang, 2003.]
The practices associated with keeping livestock also contributed to the deterioration of the forests and fields. Colonists would cut down the trees and then allow their cattle and livestock to graze freely in the forest and never plant more trees. The animals trampled and tore up the ground so much as to cause long-term destruction and damage.
Soil exhaustion was a huge problem in New England agriculture. Farming with oxen did allow the colonist to farm more land but it increased erosion and decreased
soil fertility. This was due to deeper plow cuts in the soil that allowed the soil more contact with oxygen causing
nutrient depletion Nutrient depletion is a form of resource depletion and refers to the loss of nutrients and micronutrients in a habitat or parts of the biosphere, most often the soil (soil depletion, soil degradation). On the level of a complete ecological niche or ...
. In grazing fields in New England, the soil was being compacted by the large number of cattle and this did not give the soil enough oxygen to sustain life.
In the United States, farms spread from the colonies westward along with the settlers. In cooler regions,
wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
was often the crop of choice when lands were newly settled, leading to a "wheat frontier" that moved westward over the course of years. Also very common in the antebellum
Midwest was farming
corn while raising
hogs, complementing each other especially since it was difficult to get grain to market before the canals and railroads. After the "wheat frontier" had passed through an area, more diversified farms including
dairy cattle generally took its place. Warmer regions saw plantings of
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
and herds of
beef cattle. In the early colonial south, raising
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
and cotton was common, especially through the use of slave labor until the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
. With an established source for labor, and the development of the
cotton gin in 1793, the south was able to maintain an economy based on the production of cotton. By the late 1850s, the south produced one-hundred percent of the 374 million pounds of cotton used in the United States. The rapid growth in cotton production was possible because of the availability of slaves. In the northeast, slaves were used in agriculture until the early 19th century. In the Midwest, slavery was prohibited by the
Freedom Ordinance of 1787.
The introduction and broad adoption of scientific agriculture since the mid-19th century contributed to economic growth in the United States. This development was facilitated by the
Morrill Act and the
Hatch Act of 1887
The Hatch Act of 1887 (ch. 314, , enacted 1887-03-02, et seq.) gave federal funds, initially of $15,000 each, to state land-grant colleges in order to create a series of agricultural experiment stations, as well as pass along new information, es ...
which established in each state a
land-grant university (with a mission to teach and study agriculture) and a federally funded system of
agricultural experiment station
An agricultural experiment station (AES) or agricultural research station (ARS) is a scientific research center that investigates difficulties and potential improvements to food production and agribusiness. Experiment station scientists work with ...
s and
cooperative extension networks which place
extension agent
Agricultural extension is the application of scientific research and new knowledge to agricultural practices through farmer education. The field of 'extension' now encompasses a wider range of communication and learning activities organized for ...
s in each state.
Soybean
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu ...
s were not widely cultivated in the United States until the early 1930s, and by 1942 it became the world's largest soybean producer, due in part to World War II and the "need for domestic sources of fats, oils, and meal". Between 1930 and 1942, the United States' share of world soybean production grew from 3% to 47%, and by 1969 it had risen to 76%. By 1973 soybeans were the United States' "number one
cash crop, and leading export commodity, ahead of both wheat and corn". Although soybeans developed as the top
cash crop,
corn also remains as an important commodity. As the basis for "industrial food," corn is found in most modern day items at the grocery store. Aside from items like candy and soda, which contain
high fructose corn-syrup, corn is also found in non-edible items like the shining wax on store advertisements.
Significant areas of farmland were abandoned during the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
and incorporated into nascent
national forests. Later, "Sodbuster" and "Swampbuster" restrictions written into federal farm programs starting in the 1970s reversed a decades-long trend of
habitat destruction
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
that began in 1942 when farmers were encouraged to plant all possible land in support of the war effort. In the United States, federal programs administered through local
Soil and Water Conservation District
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
s provide
technical assistance and partial funding to farmers who wish to implement management practices to conserve soil and limit erosion and floods.
Scholarship has shown that farmers in the early United States were open to planting new crops, raising new animals and adopting new innovations as increased agricultural productivity in turn increased the demand for shipping services, containers, credit, storage, and the like.
Although four million farms disappeared in the United States between 1948 and 2015, total output from the farms that remained more than doubled. The number of farms with more than almost doubled between 1987 and 2012, while the number of farms with to fell over the same period by 44%.
["'They're Trying to Wipe Us Off the Map.' Small American Farmers Are Nearing Extinction"]
– ''TIME
Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...
'', November 27, 2019
Farm productivity increased in the United States from the mid-20th century until the late-20th century when productivity began to stall.
United States agriculture production in 2018
In 2018:
* It was by far the largest world
producer of maize (392 million tons). The country has been the world leader in maize production for decades and only recently China, with 257.3 million tonnes produced this year, has been approaching North American production;
* It was the largest world producer of
soy (123.6 million tons), a position that they held for many years, but recently, they have been competing with Brazil for world leadership. Brazil surpassed US soybean production in 2020.;
* It was the 4th largest world producer of
wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
(51.2 million tons), behind China, India and Russia;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
sugar beet
A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet ('' Beta vulgaris''). Together ...
(30 million tons), behind Russia and France (the beet is used to manufacture
sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or do ...
and
ethanol
Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a ...
) ;
* It was the 10th largest world producer of
sugar cane (31.3 million tons) – Cane is also used to manufacture
sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or do ...
and
ethanol
Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a ...
;
* It was the 5th largest world producer of
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
(20.6 million tons), behind China, India, Russia and Ukraine;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
tomatoes (12.6 million tons), behind China and India;
* It was the 3rd largest world
producer of cotton (11.4 million tons), behind China and India;
* It was the 12th largest world
producer of rice (10.1 million tons);
* It was the largest world producer of
sorghum (9.2 million tons);
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
grape
A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.
The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...
(6.8 million tons), behind China and Italy;
* It was the 4th largest world producer of
orange (4.8 million tons), behind Brazil, China and India;
* It was the 2nd largest world producer of
apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...
(4.6 million tons), second only to China;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...
(3.2 million tons), behind China and India;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
(2.4 million tons), behind China and India;
* It was the largest world producer of
almonds (1.8 million tons);
* It was the 2nd largest world producer of
strawberry (1.3 million tons), second only to China;
* It was the 10th largest world producer of
oats (814 thousand tons);
* It was the 8th largest world producer of
lemon (812 thousand tons);
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
pear
Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosacea ...
(730 thousand tons), behind China and Italy;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of green
pea (722 thousand tons), behind China and India;
* It was the 6th largest world producer of
peaches (700 thousand tons);
* It was the 2nd largest world producer of
walnut (613 thousand tons), second only to China;
* It was the 2nd largest world producer of
pistachio (447 thousand tons), second only to Iran;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
lentils (381 thousand tons), behind Canada and India;
* It was the 2nd largest world producer of
spinach (384 thousand tons), second only to China;
* It was the 4th largest world producer of
plum (368 thousand tons), behind China, Romania and Serbia;
* It was the 4th largest world producer of
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
(241 thousand tons), behind China, Brazil and India;
* It was the 2rd largest world producer of
lettuce and
chicory(3.6 million tons) behind China;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
cauliflower and
broccoli (1.2 million tons) behind China and India;
* It was the 3rd largest world producer of
carrots (1.5 million tons) behind China and Uzbekistan;
* It produced 3.3 million tons of
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...
;
* It produced 1.7 million tons of
beans;
* It produced 1.7 million tons of
watermelon;
* It produced 1.6 million tons of
rapeseed;
* It produced 960 thousand tons of
sunflower seed;
* It produced 804 thousand tons of
tangerine;
In addition to smaller productions of other agricultural products, such as
melon
A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. The word "melon" can refer to either the plant or specifically to the fruit. Botanically, a melon is a kind of berry, specifically a "pepo". T ...
(872 thousand tons),
pumpkin (683 thousand tons),
grapefruit (558 thousand tons),
cranberry (404 thousand tons),
cherry (312 thousand tons),
blueberry (255 thousand tons),
rye (214 thousand tons),
olive (138 thousand tons), etc.
Major agricultural products
Tonne
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...
s of United States agriculture production, as reported by the
Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
(FAO) of the U.N. in 2003 and 2013 (ranked roughly in order of value):
Other crops appearing in the top 20 at some point in the last 40 years were:
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
,
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...
, and
oats, and, rarely:
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
s,
almonds, and
sunflower seeds.
Alfalfa and
hay would both be in the top ten in 2003 if they were tracked by FAO.
Crops
Value of production
Note alfalfa and hay are not tracked by the FAO and the production of tobacco in the United States has fallen 60% between 1997 and 2003.
Yield
Heavily mechanized, U.S. agriculture has a high yield relative to other countries. As of 2004:
*Corn for grain, average of 160.4 bushels harvested per acre (10.07 t/ha)
*Soybean for beans, average of 42.5 bushels harvested per acre (2.86 t/ha)
*Wheat, average of 43.2 bushels harvested per acre (2.91 t/ha, was 44.2 bu/ac or 2.97 t/ha in 2003)
Livestock
The major livestock industries in the United States:
*
Dairy cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...
*
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus'').
In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...
cattle
*
Pig
*
Poultry
Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, qu ...
*
Seafood
*
Sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticate ...
Goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
s,
horses,
turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
s and
bees are also raised, though in lesser quantities. Inventory data is not as readily available as for the major industries. For the three major goat-producing states—Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas—there were 1.2 million goats at the end of 2002. There were 5.3 million horses in the United States at the end of 1998. There were 2.5 million colonies of bees at the end of 2005.
Farm type or majority enterprise type
Farm type is based on which commodities are the majority crops grown on a farm. Nine common types include:
*Cash grains includes
corn,
soybean
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu ...
s and other grains (
wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
,
oats,
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...
,
sorghum), dry edible
beans,
peas, and
rice.
*
Tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
*
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
*Other field crops includes
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
s,
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
es,
sunflower
The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a large annual forb of the genus ''Helianthus'' grown as a crop for its edible oily seeds. Apart from cooking oil production, it is also used as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), ...
s,
sweet potatoes,
sugarcane
Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...
, broomcorn,
popcorn,
sugar beet
A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet ('' Beta vulgaris''). Together ...
s,
mint
MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaAE ...
,
hops, seed crops,
hay,
silage, forage, etc. Tobacco and cotton can be included here if not in their own separate category.
*High-value crops includes
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...
s,
vegetables,
melon
A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. The word "melon" can refer to either the plant or specifically to the fruit. Botanically, a melon is a kind of berry, specifically a "pepo". T ...
s,
tree nuts,
greenhouse,
nursery crops, and horticultural specialties.
*
Cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...
*
Hogs
*
Dairy
*
Poultry
Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, qu ...
and
eggs
One characteristic of the
agricultural industry that sets it apart from others is the number of individuals who are
self-employed. Frequently,
farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer m ...
s and
ranchers are both the principal operator, the individual responsible for successful management and day-to-day decisions, and the primary laborer for his or her operation. For agricultural workers that sustain an injury, the resultant loss of work has implications on physical health and financial stability.
The United States has over 14,000
certified organic farms, covering more than 5 million acres, though this is less than 1% of total US farmland. The output of these farms has grown substantially since 2011, and exceeded $7.5 billion USD in 2016.
Governance
Agriculture in the United States is primarily governed by periodically renewed
U.S. farm bills. Governance is both a federal and a local responsibility with the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...
being the federal department responsible. Government aid includes research into crop types and regional suitability as well as many kinds of subsidies, some price supports and loan programs. U.S. farmers are not subject to
production quotas and some laws are different for farms compared to other workplaces.
Labor laws prohibiting children in other workplaces provide some exemptions for children working on farms with complete exemptions for children working on their family's farm. Children can also gain permits from vocational training schools or
4-H clubs which allow them to do jobs they would otherwise not be permitted to do.
A large part of the U.S. farm workforce is made up of migrant and seasonal workers, many of them recent immigrants from Latin America. Additional laws apply to these workers and their housing which is often provided by the farmer.
Farm labor
Occupational safety and health
Agriculture ranks among the most hazardous industries due to the use of chemicals and risk of injury.
Farmers are at high risk for fatal and nonfatal injuries (general
traumatic injury and
musculoskeletal injury), work-related lung diseases,
noise-induced hearing loss, skin diseases, chemical-related illnesses, and certain cancers associated with chemical use and prolonged sun exposure.
In an average year, 516 workers die doing farm work in the U.S. (1992–2005). Every day, about 243 agricultural workers suffer lost-work-time injuries, and about 5% of these result in permanent impairment. Tractor overturns are the leading cause of agriculture-related fatal injuries, and account for over 90 deaths every year. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recommends the use of roll over protection structures on tractors to reduce the risk of overturn-related fatal injuries.
Farming is one of the few industries in which families (who often share the work and live on the premises) are also at risk for injuries, illness, and death. Agriculture is the most dangerous industry for young workers, accounting for 42% of all work-related fatalities of young workers in the U.S. between 1992 and 2000. In 2011, 108 youth, less than 20 years of age, died from farm-related injuries.[Youth in Agriculture](_blank)
, OHSA, accessed January 21, 2014 Unlike other industries, half the young victims in agriculture were under age 15. For young agricultural workers aged 15–17, the risk of fatal injury is four times the risk for young workers in other workplaces Agricultural work exposes young workers to safety hazards such as machinery, confined spaces, work at elevations, and work around livestock. The most common causes of fatal farm-related youth injuries involve machinery, motor vehicles, or drowning. Together these three causes comprise more than half of all fatal injuries to youth on U.S. farms. Women in agriculture (including the related industries of forestry and fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...
) numbered 556,000 in 2011.[
Agriculture in the U.S. makes up approximately 75% of the country's pesticide use. Agricultural workers are at high risk for being exposed to dangerous levels of pesticides, whether or not they are directly working with the chemicals.] For example, with issues like pesticide drift, farmworkers are not the only ones exposed to these chemicals; nearby residents come into contact with the pesticides as well. The frequent exposure to these pesticides can have detrimental effects on humans, resulting in adverse health reactions associated with pesticide poisoning
A pesticide poisoning occurs when pesticides, chemicals intended to control a pest, affect non-target organisms such as humans, wildlife, plant, or bees. There are three types of pesticide poisoning. The first of the three is a single and shor ...
. Migrant workers, especially women, are at higher risk for health issues associated with pesticide exposure due to lack of training or appropriate safety precautions. United States agricultural workers experience 10,000 cases or more of physician-diagnosed pesticide poisoning
A pesticide poisoning occurs when pesticides, chemicals intended to control a pest, affect non-target organisms such as humans, wildlife, plant, or bees. There are three types of pesticide poisoning. The first of the three is a single and shor ...
annually.
Research centers
Some U.S. research centers are focused on the topic of health and safety in agricultural practices. These centers not only conduct research on the subject of occupational disease and injury prevention, but also promote agricultural health and safety through educational outreach programs. Most of these groups are funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the US Department of Agriculture, or other state agencies. Centers include:
* Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE
* Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health, University of Iowa
The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 co ...
, Iowa City, IA
* High Plains Intermountain Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
* National Children's Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety, Marshfield, WI
* Northeast Center for Agricultural and Occupational Health, New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health, Cooperstown, NY
* Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center, University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seatt ...
, Seattle, WA
* Southeast Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention, University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
, Lexington, KY
* Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention and Education, University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
, Tyler, TX
Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center
a collaboration between the University of Minnesota School of Public Health
The University of Minnesota School of Public Health, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a professional school of the University of Minnesota. The school offers 16 masters programs and four doctoral programs, which culminate in one of the follo ...
, Minneapolis, MN, University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine, St. Paul, MN, Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, MN and the National Farm Medicine Center, Marshfield, WI with Migrant Clinicians Network, Salisbury, MD
* Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The inst ...
, CA
Farmer suicide
Environmental issues
Climate change
Demographics
The number of women working in agriculture has risen and the 2002 census of agriculture recorded a 40% increase in the number of female farm workers.[Albright, Carmen (2006). "Who's Running The Farm?: Changes and characteristics of Arkansas women in Agriculture". American Agricultural Economics Association: 1315–1322 – via JSTOR.] Inequality and respect are common issues for these workers, as many have reported that they are not being respected, listened to, or taken seriously due to traditional views of women as housewives and caretakers.
Women may also face resistance when attempting to advance to higher positions. Other issues reported by female farm workers include receiving less pay than their male counterparts and a refusal or reluctance by their employers to offer their female workers the same additional benefits given to male workers such as housing.
As of 2012, there were 44,629 African-American farmers in the United States. The vast majority of African-American farmers were in southern states.
Industry
Historically, farmland has been owned by small property owners, but as of 2017 institutional investors, including foreign corporations, had been purchasing farmland. In 2013 the largest producer of pork, Smithfield Foods, was bought by a company from China.
As of 2017, only about 4% of farms have sales over $1m, but these farms yield two-thirds of total output. Some of these are large farms have grown organically from private family-owned businesses.
Land ownership laws
As of 2019, six states—Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Dakota, and Oklahoma—have laws banning foreign ownership of farmland. Missouri, Ohio, and Oklahoma are looking to introduce bills banning foreign ownership as of 2019.
The state with the most foreign ownership as of 2019 is Maine, which has 3.1 million acres that are foreign-controlled, followed closely by Texas at 3 million acres. Alabama, at 1.6 million acres, Washington, at 1.5 million acres, and Michigan, at 1.3 million acres, round out the top five, according to the Midwest Center's analysis.
See also
* Agribusiness
* Beekeeping in the United States
Commercial Beekeeping in the United States dates back to the 1860s.
History Development of beekeeping in the United States
Botanist S.B. Parsons was commissioned by the US government to travel to northern Italy in 1859 to obtain pure strains of ...
* Child nutrition programs
* Electrical energy efficiency on United States farms
* Fishing industry in the United States
As with other countries, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the coast of the United States gives its fishing industry special fishing rights. It covers 11.4 million square kilometres (4.38 million sq mi), which is the second largest zone ...
* Genetic engineering in the United States
* History of agriculture in the United States
The history of agriculture in the United States covers the period from the first English settlers to the present day. In Colonial America, agriculture was the primary livelihood for 90% of the population, and most towns were shipping points for th ...
* Pesticides in the United States
* Poultry farming in the United States
* Soil in the United States
* Farmers' suicides in the United States
Farmers' suicides in the United States refers to the national occurrences of farmers taking their own lives, largely since the 1980s, partly due to their falling into debt, but as a larger mental health crisis among U.S. agriculture workers. I ...
* List of largest producing countries of agricultural commodities
References
Citations
Cited sources
*
Further reading
* Winterbottom, Jo; Huffstutter, P. J. (Feb. 2015)
Rent walkouts point to strains in U.S. farm economy
''Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was est ...
''
External links
United States Department of Agriculture
National Ag Safety Database
North American Guidelines for Children's Agricultural Tasks
{{United States topics