Beginning Farmers and Ranchers
By Mary Ahearn and Doris Newton
Economic Information Bulletin No. (EIB-53) 32 pp,
May 2009
USDA defines beginning farmers and ranchers as those who have operated a farm or ranch for 10 years or less either as a sole operator or with others who have operated a farm or ranch for 10 years or less. Beginning farmers tend to be younger than established farmers and to operate smaller farms or ranches, some of which may provide no annual production. Beginning farmers often face obstacles getting started, including high startup costs and limited availability of land. USDA—through the Farm Service Agency and the Natural Resources Conservation Service—provides loans and conservation assistance to beginning farmers and ranchers. This report draws on data from annual surveys and the Census of Agriculture to provide policymakers with a better understanding of beginning farmers and ranchers, including how they contribute to U.S. agricultural production.
Keywords: Agricultural statistics, Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS), beginning farmers, ranchers, Census of Agriculture, farm assets, Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, Conservation Reserve Program, operator characteristics, ERS, USDA
In this report ... Chapters are
in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.
Charts and graphs (in .png format) from this report are available in the .zip file listed below. The .zip file also contains a document (readme.txt) that lists the name and title of each chart or graph file.
Updated date: May 15, 2009
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