| General Statistics
- Two million farms feed
a population nearly four times larger than in 1900, when farmers
operated 5.7 million farms and comprised 38 percent of our labor
force. In 1999 farmers made up 2.4 percent of the labor force.
- Today's average farm
is 417 acres compared to 147 acres in 1900.
- Today's farmer feeds
more than 130 people in the United States and abroad. In 1960
that number was 25.8.
- 42 percent of U.S. total
land area is farmland.
- U.S. Farmers account
for 42.7 percent of the world's soybean production and 34.4
percent of the world's corn production.
- Almost 90 percent of
U.S. farms are operated by individuals or family corporations.
- More than 15 percent
of the U.S. population is employed in farm or farm-related jobs.
- U.S. consumers spend
roughly 9 percent of their income on food compared with 11 percent
in the United Kingdom, 17 percent in Japan, 27 percent in South
Africa and 53 percent in India.
- Farmers and ranchers
provide food and habitat for 75 percent of the nation's wildlife.
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| Production
Improvements
- U.S. Farmers and ranchers
produce meat that is lower in fat and cholesterol. The result
is beef cuts that have 27 percent less fat than in 1985.
- Biotechnology has resulted
in better tasting fruits and vegetables that stay fresh longer
and are naturally resistant to insects.
- Plant breeding has resulted
in crops better able to handle the environmental affects of
drought and disease and insect infestations resulting in higher
yields at harvest and lower costs to the consumer.
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| Technology/Equipment
Advancements
- Today's combines can
harvest 900 bushels of corn per hour. In the 1930s a farmer
could harvest (by hand) about 100 bushels of corn in a nine-hour
day.
- Precision farming using
satellite maps and computer models enables farmers to use less
production inputs to produce a higher quality, higher yielding
crop.
- Technology products like
OSU's GreenSeek satellite guidance system improve farming efficiency,
reduce operator fatigue and help keep the cost of food down
for U.S. consumers.
- Farmers use computers
and satellites daily to improve the efficiency of their production
operations and track production processes on general and special
crops.
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| New Uses
- Ethanol accounts for
the largest industrial use of any commodity crop.
- Some crops are being
bred specifically for use in pharmaceutical production.
- Soybeans are used in
the five major markets currently dependent on petroleum products
including: plastics, coatings and ink, adhesives, lubricants
and solvents.
- Corn also is used in
place of certain petroleum-based products in industrial applications.
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