Economic Research Report No. (ERR-152) 61 pp

August 2013

Farm Size and the Organization of U.S. Crop Farming

Crop production and land have been shifting to larger farm operations-mostly from midsize operations. The report draws on comprehensive farm-level data to detail changes in farm size and other attributes of farm structure, and to evaluate the key driving forces, including technologies, farm organization and business relationships, land attributes, and government policies. Errata: On September 9, 2013, a citation was added to the report's list of references (U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). 2009. Farms, Land in Farms, and Livestock Operations 2008 Summary. February), completing a reference to "USDA (2009)" in footnote 3 in the box on page 6.

Keywords: cropland consolidation, crop production, large crop farm, farm size, farm size measure, farm structure, farm organization, family farm, industrial agriculture, farm finances

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