New statistics show an ever changing Oregon agriculture, May 5

Oregon farms remain predominantly family owned, many smaller farms appear to be disappearing, the amount of irrigated farmland has decreased, and the value of organic agriculture has grown tremendously. Those are among the final results of the 2012 Census of Agriculture just released by the US Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).  The Census of Agriculture is conducted every five years, and is the most ambitious and important compilation of all agriculture surveys. Data from all fifty states has been compiled following a comprehensive survey of nearly every known farmer and rancher in the nation. Preliminary data released in February showed that Oregon has a smaller number of farms, a larger average size of farms, and an older average age of farmer and rancher. The final results include county-level data which provides useful and insightful information for researchers and analysts.  According to the new census, farm ownership in Oregon appears much the same as it was in 2007. Of the state’s 35,439 farms, nearly 91 percent are family-owned, virtually unchanged from the previous census. The amount of acreage under family ownership has dropped slightly from 74 percent to 70 percent, while the amount of sales from family owned farms has also decreased a bit from 71 percent to just under 69 percent.  Overall, Oregon has fewer farms that recorded less than $10,000 in annual sales than it did in 2007– nearly 4,000 less– but that category of farms by value of sales remains the largest, accounting for more than 64 percent of all Oregon farms. It still appears that small farms are having a difficult time staying viable. In some cases, however, they may be growing their way out of the category.  For state and national data, go to <www.agcensus.usda.gov>.