A report from the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service shows the number of farms in Indiana decreased in 2022.
While the number of active farms in the state decreased from 55,100 to 54,800, the average farm size increased by one acre to 270 acres per farm.
Nathanial Warenski, Indiana State Statistician of the USDA, said the numbers reflect a national trend.
“Roughly speaking, we are following the same national trend in Indiana year to year as we are seeing nationally,” he said.
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In 2022, the U.S. is estimated to be down 9,350 farms from 2021, while also gaining an average of one acre per farm.
Data for the report is collected via the June Area Survey.
“Every bit of land in the United States is broken up into segments, and we sample the segments and then we have training numerators go out and ask everybody who operates land or who lives on land to determine what they grow, what livestock is on there, and such,” he said. “And from there, the statisticians within the office analyze the data and make sure the data that we're seeing coming back is correct.”
The USDA defines a farm as ‘any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold during the year.’
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