Uses and Publications

Table of Contents

Uses of Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) Data

  • Topic pages: The Economic Research Service (ERS) provides current information on U.S. agriculture through topic pages on its website. Pages relying heavily on ARMS data include
  • Data products:
  • Official estimates:
    • Farm finances: ARMS data provide the foundation for official USDA estimates of the income, assets, and debt of the farm sector, farm businesses, and farm households. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), in turn, includes estimates of net farm income in its annual estimates of gross domestic product and personal income and in the development of State and local area personal income estimates.
    • Cost of production: ARMS data are used to fulfill a congressional mandate to report cost-of-production estimates for corn, wheat, cotton, grain sorghum, barley, oats, and dairy. ARMS data are also used to report cost-of-production estimates for other commodities that compete for agricultural resources, including rice, peanuts, soybeans, hogs, and cow-calf.
    • Agricultural productivity: ARMS price and expenditure data are incorporated into USDA estimates of agricultural productivity.
    • Chemical use: to meet the requirements of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 and the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996, ARMS collects data on field crop chemical use.
  • Staff analysis: ARMS data are used to respond to informational requests from non-profit groups and government stakeholders such as other USDA agencies, Congress, and the White House. Examples of such requests include:
    • Calculating farm energy cost-to-output ratios
    • Highlighting the distribution of farm income, household income, and potential problems servicing debt
    • Explaining the distribution of farm program payments, and
    • Identifying the characteristics of producers purchasing crop insurance.
  • Program administration: ARMS data aid the administration of government programs.
    • ARMS data provide the basis for weights to calculate the Prices Paid by Farmers Index, used to calculate parity prices required by the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act. Parity prices help regulate some 45 fruit, vegetable, and nut Federal marketing orders.
    • The Agricultural Marketing Service uses ARMS data to derive estimates of the cost of milk production.
    • The Risk Management Agency uses tabulations of ARMS to understand what risk management tools are most commonly used by farmers.
    • The Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Services have used ARMS data to plan its programs regarding pest management strategies.
  • Publications/research: ERS uses ARMS data for research and publications on variety of topics, including farm management, technology adoption, resource use, and farm household well-being. See the next section for examples.

Selected Recent ERS Publications Using ARMS

  • America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance: 2024 Edition (EIB-283, December 2024)
    American farms represent a diverse set of business operations and farm operators. This annual report describes the characteristics of U.S. farms and ranches with the most recent data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). Statistics for calendar year 2023 are presented using a farm classification developed by USDA, ERS to categorize farms into groups based on each farm’s annual gross cash farm income, the main occupation of the farm’s principal operator, and ownership (family versus nonfamily). This edition contains two new sections: (1) a section documenting farmers’ unpriced inventory held both on- and off-farm, and (2) a section outlining adoption rates for key precision agriculture technologies and the reasons provided by producers for their precision technology adoption decisions.
  • Older Farm Households More Likely To Have Retirement Accounts, but Level of Retirement Savings Lower Than Average U.S. Household (Amber Waves, October 2024)
    Farmers face unique circumstances in saving for and maintaining income during retirement compared with other U.S. residents. As business owners, their annual incomes fluctuate depending on market and weather situations, and they may have limited access to employer-sponsored retirement savings plans. However, the majority of farm households include members with off-farm employment, which may provide more stable income and access to retirement benefits. Researchers with USDA, Economic Research Service used data from Agricultural Resource Management Surveys from 2018 to 2022 to assess retirement preparedness among U.S. farmers and ranchers.
  • Measurement of Output, Inputs, and Total Factor Productivity in U.S. Agricultural Productivity Accounts (TB-1966, August 2024)
    The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been monitoring the U.S. farm sector’s productivity performance since the 1960s. Today, USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) bases its U.S. agricultural productivity statistics on a sophisticated system of production accounts, drawing data from numerous sources. Between 1948 and 2021, total farm output grew by 1.46 percent annually. Over time, the input composition has changed, shifting from labor and land use to more use of intermediate inputs and durable capital assets. This report addresses how USDA, ERS measures output, inputs, and total factor productivity in its U.S. agricultural productivity accounts and how input quality changes are accounted for in the measurement.
  • Energy Payments to Farmers Vary According to Farm Size, Energy Markets, Location (Amber Waves, July 2024)
    From 2011 to 2020, about 3.5 percent of U.S. farm operations received payments for hosting commercial energy production from resources such as oil, natural gas, and wind power on their land. The payments can be a source of significant income for farm operators. During the period, farmers received an annual average of $30,482 (in 2020 U.S. dollars) in commercial energy payments per farm, about 30 percent of a typical operation’s off-farm income. Average annual energy payments during that time also were higher than what farmers received through Government programs. USDA, Economic Research Service researchers found the size of energy payments to farm households are driven primarily by farm size, energy market conditions, and the location of the operation. Researchers examining data from the 2011–20 Agricultural Resource Management Surveys (ARMS) found energy income fluctuated from year to year, averaging as high as $62,944 in 2013 and as low as $14,032 in 2020.
  • Debt Use by U.S. Farm Businesses, 2012–2021 (EIB-273, June 2024)
    The short-term Federal funds rate, which impacts the interest rate of other loans, has been increasing since March 2022. The rate can disproportionately affect demand for different types of loans, as well as the choice of the lender for different farm sizes. This report examines farm debt by lenders, as well as other attributes, such as the use of different loan types (real estate and non-real estate) among different types of farm businesses. The authors used data from multiple sources, including the USDA, Economic Research Service's Farm Income and Wealth Statistics and Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS), from 2012 to 2021 to understand the farm debt situation. Total U.S. farm debt in 2021 was $503.7 billion (in 2022 dollars), which was $127.8 billion (34 percent) higher compared with 2012 and was primarily driven by farm real estate debt. Total farm real estate debt was $344.5 billion, or more than two-thirds of total debt in 2021. The Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of borrower-owned lending institutions and specialized service organizations, provided 45 percent of total debt, and commercial banks provided 35 percent, resulting in these two lender entities providing 80 percent of the sector’s debt. The share of farm businesses with some debt grew as gross cash farm income increased along with the average and median loan size.
  • Utility-Scale Solar and Wind Development in Rural Areas: Land Cover Change (2009–20) (ERR-330, May 2024)
    This report examines land cover and land cover change associated with solar and wind farms over the period 2009–20. Wind development has been expanding since the late 1990s and comprises a larger share of renewable capacity than solar; most solar farms were installed after 2016. Due to decreasing costs and new or existing policies promoting renewable development, the pace is expected to increase. The amount of land cover directly affected by solar and wind is estimated to be small relative to the amount of farmland. Still, more than 90 percent of wind turbines and 70 percent of solar farms in rural areas were sited on agricultural land. There are large regional differences in the distribution of solar and wind development. Further, even in years where no development occurred, land cover changed more frequently on land used for solar than wind, suggesting that solar and wind were sited on different types of land. Agricultural land surrounding wind turbines typically maintained agricultural land cover after development, while approximately 15 percent of land surrounding solar farms shifted out of agriculture. This suggests that wind is compatible with agriculture and that there is some land use competition between farmland and solar farms.
  • The Role of Commercial Energy Payments in Agricultural Producer Income (EIB-271, April 2024)
    A significant portion of energy production in the United States takes place on farmland, which can have substantial economic implications for the farmers who host such developments. This report analyzes energy payments made to farmers for the production of oil, natural gas, and wind energy on their land. The authors used 10 years of data (2011–20) from the USDA’s Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) in their analysis. Results show that 3.5 percent of farm operations received energy payments and that the average annual payment to the operators was more than $30,000 (in 2020 dollars), contributing substantially to farm household income and exceeding government payments to these operations. Energy payments were more common in counties producing oil and natural gas than in those with wind energy development. Larger farms were significantly more likely to receive energy payments and received higher payments on average. Further, Hispanic producers and those with less education were significantly less likely to receive energy payments. Although the average energy payment varied by ethnicity and education status, this report did not find a statistically significant difference after accounting for farm location and size.
  • An Overview of Farms Operated by Socially Disadvantaged, Women, and Limited Resource Farmers and Ranchers in the United States (EIB-266, February 2024)
    The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recognizes several groups of farmers who have been historically underserved by USDA and operates several programs and policies targeting these groups. Yet, there is limited information about the current financial health of the farms these producers operate, their credit and agricultural program use, which inhibits the measurement of progress toward more equitable outcomes. This report provides an overview of the financial characteristics of the farms operated by socially disadvantaged (individuals identifying as Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Hispanic or Latino, and Asian or Pacific Islander), women, and limited resource producers (farms with low sales and low household income), using data from the 2017-20 annual Agricultural Resource Management Survey.
  • An Analysis of the Effect of Sunsetting Tax Provisions for Family Farm Households (ERR-328, February 2024)
    Two recent laws enacted temporary provisions to the Federal tax code: the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The authors of this report assess the impact of these sunsetting tax provisions on tax liabilities for farm households. Using data from the USDA, Agricultural Resource Management Survey (2018–21) and the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Federal income tax and estate tax models, the authors estimate that the expiration of the temporary provisions of the ARPA and TCJA would increase farm households’ Federal income tax liabilities by $8.9 billion and estate tax liabilities by $647 million in the year following expiration.
  • Farmland Rental and Conservation Practice Adoption (EIB-270, March 2024)
    This report explores patterns across cropland owner-operators and cropland renters in the adoption of conservation tillage, cover cropping, and six permanent structural practices (riparian buffers, filter strips, field borders, terraces, grass waterways, and contour farming). Data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) (2011–21) on corn, soybeans, cotton, barley, and sorghum growers show little evidence of systemic differences in conservation practice adoption on owner-operated fields compared to cash-rented fields. Differences between owner-operated plots and share-rented plots persist for certain practices and regions of the United States. Using data from the Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land (TOTAL) Survey, the report also examines how the institutional factors surrounding farmland rental markets challenge the notion that land renters are inclined to exploit long-term soil quality for short-term profits.
  • Structure, Costs, and Technology Used on U.S. Dairy Farms (ERR-334, July 2024)
    The milk production segment of the U.S. dairy industry has experienced significant change over the past two decades. This study uses USDA’s Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) dairy version data (and other USDA data) to examine changes in farm structure, production costs, and technology adoption and to compare dairy farms by size and production region over the past two decades. This report addresses how the U.S. dairy farm structure has changed over the past two decades and how the structure differs by size of the operation and by U.S. region.
  • Cover Crops on Livestock Operations: Potential for Expansion in the United States (AP-120, May 2024)
    This report looks at how incorporating cover crops into an integrated crop-livestock system with cattle, such as by grazing or harvesting the cover crops for forage, might improve the profitability of cover cropping and livestock production. It summarizes the literature on the profitability of using cover crops for forage, presents new findings from USDA’s Census of Agriculture and Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) data on the prevalence of cover crop use and grazing/harvesting on cattle operations, and examines the potential for increased adoption of cover crops on cattle operations.
  • America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance: 2023 Edition (EIB-263, December 2023)
    American farms represent a diverse set of business operations and farm operators. This annual report describes characteristics of U.S. farms and ranches with the most recent data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS), an annual survey conducted by USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS). Statistics are presented using a farm classification developed by USDA, ERS to categorize farms into groups with some common characteristics. The classifications used are mainly based on each farm’s annual revenue, the main occupation of the farm’s principal operator, and ownership (family versus non-family). Additionally, the report explores the differences in farm operations in 2022 by race and ethnicity of the operators.
  • Characteristics and Trends of U.S. Soybean Production Practices, Costs, and Returns Since 2002 (ERR-316, June 2023)
    In the past 20 years, U.S. soybean acreage has grown 18 percent, from 74 million to 87 million acres. Soybean yields have also increased. This study uses nationally representative survey data of U.S. soybean farmers (along with costs and returns data) to examine how production practices, export demand, public policy, and environmental factors have changed over the past 20 years.Examining Financial Risk Measures on Family and Nonfamily Farms (Amber Waves, June 2023) The Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) provides data on two measures of financial performance: the operating profit margin (the share of gross income that is profit) and the current ratio (the ratio of short-term assets to short-term debt). Researchers use these data to gain a sense of risk faced by different types of farms.
  • Access to Farmland by Beginning and Socially Disadvantaged Farmers: Issues and Opportunities (AP-096, December 2022)
    This report is in response to Section 12607 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (the 2018 Farm Bill), wherein the U.S. Congress tasked the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) with analyzing the barriers preventing or hindering the ability of beginning and socially disadvantaged (SDA) farmers and ranchers to acquire or access farmland, and what USDA is doing to address these concerns. The authors examined the geographic distribution of beginning and socially disadvantaged (SDA) farmers and ranchers across counties in the United States. The county share of farm operations that identifies as beginning or socially disadvantaged is used as a measure of the ease or difficulty of establishing or expanding farm enterprises for these groups.
  • America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance: 2022 Edition (EIB-247, December 2022)
    This report uses a farm classification, or typology, developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) to categorize farms into more homogeneous groupings to better understand conditions across the Nation’s diverse farm sector. This edition reports the distribution of farm and non-farm pandemic assistance farms received in 2021 and enhances coverage of farm financial stress by including information on short-term debts and fungible assets. Also reported are farm input purchase strategies, adoption of agritourism, and the percentage of farm household members with healthcare coverage.
  • Rotational Grazing Adoption by Cow-Calf Operations (EIB-243, November 2022)
    Rotational grazing is a management practice in which livestock are cycled through multiple fenced grazing areas (paddocks) to manage forage production, forage quality, and environmental quality. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and other organizations promote rotational grazing as an important practice for providing improved environmental outcomes, relative to conventional grazing, in which livestock are not rotated between grazing areas. Despite the breadth of support for rotational grazing, only limited information is available on its prevalence and the variation in how producers implement the practice. This report provides details on how frequently or "intensively" grazing operations rotate livestock between paddocks, key system characteristics such as average paddock size, and how outcomes such as stocking density and cost relate to system characteristics.
  • U.S. Hog Production: Rising Output and Changing Trends in Productivity Growth (ERR-308, August 2022)
    The hog sector began a major transformation in the early 1990s, and since then, it has experienced productivity growth and structural change, increased output, and expanded exports. This study examined changes in hog production from 1992 to 2017. During this period, production contracts became the most common business model in hog production, and hog farms grew larger and more specialized. Technological advancements improved productivity, though changes in production costs were mixed.
  • Farmers Report Soil-Related Resource Concerns on About Half of Soybean, Wheat, Cotton, and Oat Fields (Amber Waves, May 2022)
    A recent USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) study considered how many farmers who reported having resource concerns on fields in several commodities also received technical assistance in addressing the concerns. The study analyzed data collected from USDA’s Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) for fields growing oats and cotton in 2015, wheat (including winter, spring, and durum) in 2017, and soybeans in 2018. The analysis focused on seven resource concerns primarily related to soil and water on cropland: water-driven erosion, wind-driven erosion, soil compaction, poor drainage, low organic matter, within-field water quality concerns, and "other" concerns. These roughly correspond with 31 specific soil and water resource concerns identified by NRCS, among a total of 47 specific concerns, that form the basis of conservation planning.
  • Increasing the Value of Animal Manure for Farmers (AP-109, March 2023)
    This study describes current manure production, handling, storage, and use utilizing data from the USDA Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). In addition, the report describes existing and emerging technologies that have the potential to increase the value of manure or reduce manure management costs.
  • U.S. Dairy Productivity Increased Faster in Large Farms and Across Southwestern States (Amber Waves, March 2022)
    Research from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) measured productivity in the U.S. dairy sector using data from the Agricultural Resource and Management Survey (ARMS) that is conducted jointly by ERS and USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. The study tracked the growth of milk output over time while controlling for factors such as herd size, feed, capital, intermediate materials and services (such as veterinary work, electricity, fuel, fertilizers, and pesticides), and environmental factors such as rainfall and temperature.
  • Farm Labor, Human Capital, and Agricultural Productivity in the United States (ERR-302, February 2022)
    This report discusses the contribution of farm labor to U.S. agricultural growth and assesses the changing composition of the U.S. farm labor force with special attention to the changes in educational attainment among farm operators and other workers.
  • America's Diverse Family Farms: 2021 Edition (EIB-231, December 2021)
    This report provides the latest statistics on U.S. farms, including production, financial performance, pandemic assistance, and farm household characteristics by farm size. New sections of this edition explore changes in direct sales, pandemic-related off-farm job loss and furloughs, farm operating expenses, and the distribution of USDA and non-USDA pandemic assistance received in 2020.
  • Agricultural Income and Finance Situation and Outlook: 2021 Edition (EIB-228, November 2021)
     The agricultural economy experienced pronounced volatility over 2009–19, including strong periods of expansions in the first part of the decade followed by several years of contraction. This report presents and assesses recent trends in three major areas of farm finance: farm income, Government payment programs, and Chapter 12 bankruptcy eligibility and rates.
  • The Effect on Family Farms of Changing Capital Gains Taxation at Death (EB-31, September 2021)
    ERS researchers present a framework for evaluating the effects of changes in capital gains taxation on inherited assets. This report provides an analysis of potential impacts on family farm estates’ capital gains tax liability under the proposed American Families Plan (AFP).
  • Trends in Production Practices and Costs of the U.S. Corn Sector (ERR-294, July 2021)
    Corn for grain is a major field crop in the United States, with wide-ranging uses including animal feed, ethanol, food, beverages, industrial products, and exports. This report describes the technological and structural changes in U.S. corn production over 1996-2018, and describes how these changes have affected farm expenditures, net returns, productivity, yields, and production costs.
  • Absent Landlords in Agriculture – A Statistical Analysis (ERR-281, March 2021)
    The majority of rented farmland is owned by landlords who do not operate farms, and a subset of these landlords, known as absent landlords, do not reside in the local farming area. This report explores associations between landlord absenteeism and measures of long-term economic and agricultural health.
  • Cover Crop Trends, Programs, and Practices in the United States (EIB-222, February 2021)
    On U.S. cropland, the use of cover crops increased by 50 percent between 2012 and 2017. Over this same period, Federal and State conservation programs have increased efforts to promote cover crops through financial and technical assistance. Based on a series of farm- and field-level surveys, this report details how cover crops are managed on corn, cotton, soybean, and wheat fields.
  • Farm Use of Futures, Options, and Marketing Contracts (EIB-219, October 2020)
    This study uses data from the 2016 Agricultural Resource Management Survey to describe producers' use of futures, options, and marketing contracts as risk management strategies, with a primary focus on corn and soybeans.
  • Consolidation in U.S. Dairy Farming (ERR-274, July 2020)
    The number of licensed U.S. dairy herds fell by more than half between 2002 and 2019, with an accelerating rate of decline in 2018 and 2019, even as milk production continued to grow. Production has been shifting to much larger but fewer farms, and that shift shows no sign of slowing. Larger operations realize lower costs of production, on average, and those advantages persist.
  • Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators, 2019 (EIB-208, May 2019)
    Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators, 2019, describes trends in economic, structural, resource, and environmental indicators in the agriculture sector. The indicators covered in this report provide assessments of important changes in U.S. agriculture—industry development; environmental effects; and implications for economic, social, and environmental sustainability.

NASS Summary Tables and Charts

Other Material Highlighting ARMS

  • ARMS Uses Slide Show
    James MacDonald of ERS explains financial reports, policy relevant reports, and custom reports and how the ARMS data support them.
  • Farmland Ownership and Tenure Highlights
    To learn more about the rented land and who owns it, the 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land (TOTAL) survey was conducted as a special study through the Census of Agriculture program to collect data from landowners and landlords of agricultural land in coordination with ARMS.
  • 2013 Rice Highlights
    In 2013, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service and ERS conducted the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) of the U.S. rice industry. During the Fall of 2013 and the Winter of 2014, trained enumerators conducted personal interviews with more than 1,000 rice growers in the 10 largest rice producing states. This publication includes highlights of their production practices, resource use, and finances in 2013. Earlier ARMS rice surveys covered outcomes during 2000 and 2006, and this publication compares recent results to those from earlier years.
  • 2013 Peanut Highlights
    During the Fall of 2013 and the Winter of 2014, trained enumerators conducted personal interviews with more than 900 peanut growers in the largest peanut producing states. This publication includes highlights of their production practices, resource use, and finances in 2013. Earlier ARMS peanut surveys covered outcomes from 2004, and this publication compares recent results to those from earlier years.
  • 2012 Soybean Highlights
    During the summer and fall of 2012 and winter of 2013, trained enumerators conducted personal interviews with almost 2,500 soybean growers in the 19 largest soybean-producing States. The farmers provided information about their production practices, operating costs, and soybean production. This publication, one of the first that uses the new soybean data, includes highlights of production practices and resource use. You can also download a PDF version of the soybean highlights.
  • 2011 Broiler Highlights
    During the first three months of 2012, trained enumerators conducted personal interviews with more than 2,000 broiler growers in the 17 largest broiler-producing states. The farmers provided information about their operating costs and farm-related income. Broiler producers were also asked about feed, housing, and sales during 2011. The following results are highlights of production practices and resource use. ARMS results indicate that U.S. broiler production is shifting toward larger birds. You can also download a PDF version of the broiler highlights.