Overview of Wisconsin Agriculture AAE 320: Farming Systems Management

1. Overview of Wisconsin AgricultureAAE 320: Farming Systems Management Dr. Paul D. Mitchell 418 Taylor Hall 608-265-6514 pdmitchell@wisc.edu

2. Value of Ag Production in 2017 for Top 10 US States ($ Billion)

3. Wisconsin Agriculture • Wisconsin Agricultural Statistics 2018 (for 2017) • https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Wisconsin/Publications/Annual_Statistical_Bulletin/2018AgStats-WI.pdf • In Wisconsin, in 2017, there were • 68,500 farms • 14,300,000 acres in farms • Average 209 acres/farm • Produced $12.7 billion in production value • Generated $1.8 billion in net farm income, giving a 1.8/12.7 = 14.3% profit margin

4. WI Farms by Annual Sales 2017

5. WI Farms by Annual Sales 2017

6. Number of WI Farms by Annual Gross Sales 2013-2017

7. Average Acres per WI Farm by Annual Gross Sales 2013-2017

8. What’s Happening? • The number of farms by gross annual sales is fairly constant, but can see slight trends • Lots of little farms in Wisconsin, but the number of WI farmers “making a living” is small (~10-15%) • Lots of “small” farm households are doing something else to make additional money • Average WI farm size fairly constant at about 210 acres

9. % of Total WI Crop and Livestock Value by Commodity Category 2012-2017

10. Wisconsin Is A Major Dairy State (2017)

11. Wisconsin’s Place in US Agriculture (2017)

12. Wisconsin’s Place in US Agriculture (2017)

13. Wisconsin’s Place in US Agriculture (2017)

14. Wisconsin’s Place in US Agriculture (2017) • Other minor but important crops in Wisconsin • Ginseng: Missing from list, WI is #1

15. Nationally Important WI Agriculture • Dairy is very important: milk, cheese, whey • Milk cows and milk goats • Field crops: silage, corn, oats, forage • Vegetables: potatoes, processing vegetables (sweet corn, snap beans, green peas, carrots, cucumbers) • Fruits: cranberries, cherries, mint, ginseng • Main Point: Wisconsin Agriculture is more diverse than in many other “ag” states

16. Impact of Agriculture on WI Economy • $11.6 Billion in 2017 • > $168,000/farm

17. Impact of Agriculture on WI Economy • Contribution of Agriculture to the Wisconsin Economy: Updated for 2017 (Steve Deller 2019) Online: https://go.wisc.edu/i6947n • Agriculture in WI = $105 billion, 16% of total sales in the state, 12% of jobs, 12% of income • On-Farm: $22 billion, 4% of jobs, 3% of income • Processing: $83 billion, 8% of jobs, 9% of income • Dairy (farm & processing): $46 billion, 4% jobs, 5% income • Economic Impact of Specialty Crop Production and Processing in Wisconsin • Specialty crops $6.4 billion in WI, $1.1 billion production, $5.3 billion processing, 35,000 jobs (1% WI’s) • 2nd largest US processed vegetable industry

18. Summary • Most WI farmers have small farms and earn most of their income off the farm • The number of WI farmers “making a living” is small (about 15% or 10,000) • Dairy is the most important agricultural product in Wisconsin (40% of ag’s economic footprint), but Wisconsin agriculture is quite diversified, with other important industries • Food processing is about 80% of the economic impact of agriculture in Wisconsin • Agriculture (both farms and agribusinesses) generates about 12% of Wisconsin’s jobs and income