<html><head><style type="text/css"><!-- DIV {margin:0px;} --></style></head><body><div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">From New West Net:<br><br>The Western Economy<br>
State of the Rockies: Agriculture Just 1 Percent of Economy<br>
Surprising statistics shine new light on farming and ranching in the
West.<br>
<br>
By Jill Kuraitis, 7-02-10<br>
<br>
The Rocky Mountain West is not an agriculture region anymore.<br>
<br>
The myth – perpetuated by generations of farmers, the media and state
legislatures dominated by agricultural representatives – is that growing
food and ag commodities is the backbone of our economy. But an
impressive and comprehensive study of the region reports that
agriculture counts for just 1 percent of it and the number of people who
own or work on farms is just 2 percent of the population, down from 35
percent at its peak in 1920.<br>
<br>
Colorado College’s 2010 State of the Rockies report, now in its eighth
year of research and reporting on issues that define our lives in the
mountain west, is focused on agriculture. The report provides the
statistical overview of the region’s industry, but also delves deep into
agricultural history, land and water use, demographics, production,
finance, organization, and a “foodprint” of Rockies’ agriculture,
according to project leaders.<br>
<br>
States defined as part of the Rockies are Montana, Wyoming, Colorado,
New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and Idaho.<br>
<br>
The average age of farm operators in the U.S. has increased from 52 to
57 years old, and only between 1 and 6 percent earn all their income
from farming. In the Rockies, female farmers have increased by 257
percent. Ethnic diversity among farm owners and operators is also
trending upward.<br>
<br>
Other highlights from the report:<br>
<br>
* The Rockies contain only 7 percent of the nation’s family farms.<br>
<br>
* Continuing competition from corporate farms which produce huge
crops to sell at lower prices, still threatens smaller operations. Just 4
percent of farms are responsible for 45 percent of sales.<br>
<br>
* Organic crops, now counted as a separate and distinct category in
the report, are grown on 678,000 acres, with another 37,000 being
converted to organic.<br>
<br>
* Rocky Mountain sales of livestock are higher than average, while
sales of soybeans and corn are lower than average. Farmers are concerned
with the futures and commodities markets and increased investment
activity, which drives food prices up.<br>
<br>
* Stressors to farmers also include bank failures, difficulty in
getting loans from federal agencies, increases in property taxes, and
rising costs of feed, fuel and contract labor. <br>
<br>
<br>
The president of the National Farmers Union is quoted in the report:
“Without a properly functioning and regulated futures market, a train
wreck is headed straight for rural America that will jeopardize our
ability to continue providing a safe, affordable and abundant food
supply for this nation.” <br>
<b><br>Comment:</b><br>
Note that the population of "the Rockies" (as they term the states
between the 3 west coast states and the plains) is 7% of that of the US,
so the "only" in the bullet item about family farms (in this summary)
shouldn't be <i>too</i> surprising.<br>
<br>
On pg. 14, the table of 2008 employment by occupation tells us what the
"other 99" are doing:<br>
34% "Management, professional and related"<br>
18% "Service"<br>
25% "Sales and office"<br>
11% "Construction, extraction, maintenance and repair"<br>
10% "Production, transportation, and Material Moving"<br>
<br>
In the aggregate, pretty close to the same as the US overall, although
states vary within the region. (Idaho has 3% Farming, fishing and
forestry, Wyoming's big in extraction, etc.)<br>
<br>
One of the key findings (p. 20) was that the peak of the Rockies farm
population was 35%, reached in 1920; today it is 2%.
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