October 2004
(Updated Data for Decision Makers will be released in February 2012)

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CAUTIONARY NOTE: In 2002, the U.S. Department of Agriculture changed its data collection methods to improve its coverage of "small farmers". Due to this change, the numbers from the 2002 Census of Agriculture are markedly different from past censuses. To help accomodate this change in methodology, the Department of Agriculture adjusted the counts of 1997 - these adjusted numbers are noted throughout this publication with the label "Adj. 1997". As a result of these changes and adjustments, readers should use extreme caution in the interpretation of longitudinal trends.

Number of Farms

There were 1,340 farms counted in Kossuth County in 2002. From 1997 (adj.) to 2002, the number of farms in Kossuth County decreased by 8.7 percent. Statewide that decrease was 6.3 percent.

1. Number of Farms

Year 2002 adj. 1997 1997 1992 1987 1982

Kossuth1,340 1,468 1,404 1,592 1,718 1,885

State 90,655 96,705 90,792 96,534 105,180 115,413

Average Farm Size

In 2002, the average farm size in Kossuth County was 442 acres, compared to the state's average of 350. The averages in 1997 (adj.) were 410 and 334, respectively.

2. Average Farm Size

Year 2002 adj. 1997 1997 1992 1987 1982

Kossuth 442 410 414 386 349 324

State 350 334 343 325 301 283

Harvested Cropland

Of the acres harvested in Kossuth County in 2002, 98.6 percent were either corn or soybean acres. This was higher than the 93.4 percent statewide.

3. Percent of Total Acres Harvested in Select Crops, 2002

Crop Corn Soybeans Oats Forage

County 53.4 45.2 0.2 1.0

State 50.0 43.4 0.6 6.4

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