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

Cropland has been shifting to larger farms. The shifts have been large, centered on a doubling of farm size over 20-25 years, and they have been ubiquitous across States and commodities. But the shifts have also been complex, with land and production shifting primarily from mid-size commercial farming operations to larger farms, while the count of very small farms increases. Larger crop farms still realize better financial returns, on average, and they are able to make more intensive use of their labor and capital resources, indicating that the trends are likely to continue. The report relies 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.