USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) on Tuesday released results of the 2022 Census of Agriculture, which includes more than 6 million data points about America’s farms and ranches and the people who operate them down to the county level.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack joined NASS Administrator Hubert Hamer and USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economic Chavonda Jacobs-Young to present the report, which showed a seven percent decline since 2017 in the number of U.S. farms and ranches and two percent less acres of farmland in the country.

“This survey is a wake up call…Are we okay with losing that many farms? Are we okay with losing that much farmland? Or is there a better way,” said Vilsack.

Vilsack said the declining numbers makes the investment in climate smart agriculture even more important. “The farm then creates a second stream of income,” he said. “That’s why it’s important to continue to promote bio-product production…and transitioning into sustainable aviation fuel or a wide variety of bioproducts that can replace our over-reliance on fossil fuel and petroleum-based products.”

Some good news in the data shows an increase in the number of new and beginning (operating 10 or fewer years on any farm) as well as young (under the age of 35) producers. “I hope we take this information very seriously and understand that it need not be that every five years we report fewer farmers and less farm land, it doesn’t have to be.”

Secretary Vilsack - 2022 Census of Agriculture 16:50