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Farm and farming. Farming is the most important occupation in the world. People cannot live without food, and nearly all the food they eat comes from crops and livestock raised on farms. Various industrial materials, such as cotton and wool, also come from plants and animals raised on farms.

Farming was once the chief way of life in nearly every country. For example, the typical American family of the 1700's and early 1800's lived on a small farm. The family raised cattle, chickens, and hogs and grew corn, fruits, garden vegetables, hay, and wheat. Everyone in the family worked long and hard, but the results were often disappointing. Most families produced barely enough food for themselves. This situation began to change during the last half of the 1800's—and it changed remarkably during the 1900's.

Scientific advances since the 1800's have made farming increasingly productive. The development of better plant varieties and fertilizers has helped double and even triple the yields of some major crops. Scientific livestock care and breeding have helped increase the amount of meat that animals produce. At the same time, the use of tractors and other modern farm machines has sharply reduced the need for farm labor.

Farming is no longer the chief way of life in countries where farmers use scientific methods and labor-saving machinery. In these countries, farmers produce more food than ever before, and most of the people live and work in urban areas. These changes have occurred in all industrialized nations and have been dramatic in the United States. In 1850, each farmer in the United States produced, on the average, enough food for 4 people. Most Americans lived on farms. Today, each farmer produces enough food for well over 100 people, and less than 3 percent of all Americans live on farms. But even with the great decrease in the number of farmers, the nation's farms produce more food than the American people use. The surplus has enabled the United States to become the world's chief food exporter. About an eighth of all food exports come from American farms.

As farming has become less important as a way of life in the United States, it has become more and more important as a business. The successful farmers of today are expert not only in agriculture but also in accounting, marketing, and financing. Farms that are not run in a businesslike way have great difficulty surviving.

Kinds of farms

Farms in the United States can be divided into two main groups: (1) specialized farms and (2) mixed farms. A specialized farm concentrates on a particular type of crop or livestock. A mixed farm raises a variety of crops and livestock.

Specialized farming is profitable only if there are large commercial markets for farm products. The United States had few such markets before the late 1800's because the majority of the people lived on farms and raised their own food. Most U.S. farms, therefore, were mixed farms. Specialized farming was important mainly in the South. Unlike the North, the South has a long enough growing season (frost-free period) to raise such warm-weather crops as cotton, rice, and sugar cane. The North provided a large commercial market for these products, and many Southern farmers specialized in raising them.

The surpluses from mixed farms could feed the relatively few people who lived in U.S. cities and towns before the mid-1800's. But the urban areas began to grow rapidly during the last half of the 1800's, creating a demand for larger and larger food supplies. Farmers started to meet the demand by specializing. During the 1900's, specialized farms increased at nearly the same rapid rate as the population of U.S. cities and towns. Today, about 95 percent of the nation's farms are specialized farms.

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Specialized farms

Farmers who practice specialized farming raise the kind of crop or livestock that is best suited to their region. For example, corn is often the most profitable crop to grow in regions that have level land, fertile soil, and a warm, moist growing season. Wheat grows best in a drier and somewhat cooler climate. Dairy farming is often the most profitable kind of farming in regions with rolling land, rich pastures, and a short growing season. Much of the western half of the United States is too dry for any crops to grow without irrigation. But the West has vast grasslands, which farmers use to graze beef cattle and sheep. Irrigated farms in the West specialize in such crops as citrus fruits, cotton, rice, or vegetables. For more information on how soils and climate influence the kinds of crops and livestock that a farmer can raise, see the article on Agriculture (Agricultural practices).

In the United States, a farm is classed as a specialized farm if it earns more than half its income from the sale of one kind of crop or livestock. Many specialized farms raise other products in addition to their main one. Numerous crop farms, for example, also raise livestock, and many livestock farms also raise crops.

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Specialized crop farms make up about 50 percent of all the farms in the United States. Most of them raise field crops. Field crops are crops that must be grown on a relatively large amount of land to be profitable. They include nearly all crops except nuts and most vegetables and fruits. Nuts and most vegetables and fruits have a higher market value than do field crops. They may therefore be raised profitably on as little as 1 to 2 acres (0.4 to 0.8 hectare) of land. However, such vegetables and fruits as potatoes and pineapples must be grown in large fields to produce a crop big enough to be profitable. They are thus classed as field crops.

The most important field crops are cereal grains. Foods made from grain make up a large part of the American diet. In addition, grain is a major ingredient in livestock feed, and so it is essential to large-scale egg, meat, and milk production. The chief cereal grains grown in the United States are, in order of value, corn, wheat, sorghum, rice, barley, oats, and rye. Farmers raise these crops either to sell or to feed to their livestock. A farm that concentrates on raising grain for sale is called a cash grain farm.

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Cash grain farms mainly raise cereal grains. However, farms that specialize in dry field beans, dry peas, or soybeans are also considered to be cash grain farms. These crops are legumes (members of the pea family), not grains. But they are grown much like cereal grains and, in many cases, on the same farms.

Some cash grain farmers raise dry field beans, dry peas, rice, sorghum, or soybeans as their principal crop. However, most cash grain farmers specialize in corn or wheat. The majority of the nation's wheat farms are in the Great Plains region and the Pacific Northwest. Most farms that specialize in corn are in the Midwest and the South. Wheat is the only cash crop that most farmers in the Great Plains region grow. But in sections of the plains that have enough rainfall, many wheat farmers raise a secondary cash crop of corn or sorghum. Many corn farmers grow another grain or soybeans as a secondary cash crop.

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Other field crop farms specialize in such crops as cotton, peanuts, potatoes, sugar cane, sugar beets, or tobacco. All the cotton and peanut farms in the United States are in the southern half of the nation. California and the states that border Canada, especially Idaho and Maine, have most of the potato farms. Sugar cane is grown in Florida, Hawaii, and Louisiana. Farms in various parts of the country specialize in sugar beets. Most of the tobacco farms are in the South.

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Vegetable farms raise such produce as cucumbers, green beans, lettuce, sweet corn, and tomatoes. Many of these farms grow only one kind of vegetable. Most vegetable farms are relatively small, but some of the larger ones cover 2,000 acres (810 hectares) or more. About half the nation's vegetable farms are in seven states—California, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin.

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Fruit and nut farms concentrate on raising tree fruits, berries, grapes, and nuts. Tree fruits are the most common fruit crops by far. These fruits include apples, cherries, citrus fruits, peaches, pears, and plums. Most fruit and nut farms raise only fruits or nuts. Many of them specialize in one crop, such as grapes, oranges, or pecans. About three-fourths of the farms are in five states—California, Florida, Michigan, New York, and Washington.

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Other specialized crop farms raise flowers, nursery products, or forest products. Flower farms and nurseries are found throughout the United States. About half the farms that specialize in forest products are in the South.

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Specialized livestock farms account for about 45 percent of all U.S. farms. They can be divided into three main groups: (1) beef cattle, hog, and sheep farms, (2) dairy farms, and (3) poultry farms.

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Beef cattle, hog, and sheep farms produce most of the nation's meat animals. The majority of the farms specialize in one kind of animal. In the eastern half of the United States, many livestock farmers raise crops to feed their animals. However, most livestock farmers in the western half of the nation engage in ranching—that is, they graze beef cattle and sheep on rangeland. Most of the rangeland is dry. In many areas, a rancher needs as many as 125 acres (51 hectares) of land to provide enough grass for one animal. A ranch must therefore cover a huge area to make a profit. Ranches are by far the largest kind of farm. They average nearly 3,350 acres (1,356 hectares) in size, and some cover 40,000 acres (16,000 hectares) or more.

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Dairy farms specialize in raising milk cows. Most of the farms are concentrated near big-city markets. Many dairy farmers buy all or some of the feed they require from commercial suppliers. However, farmers in the Northeast and the Great Lakes region have large areas of pastureland that are ideal for the grazing of dairy cattle. The two regions have long been the nation's chief centers of dairy farming.

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Poultry farms raise chickens, turkeys, and other poultry for meat. They also raise laying hens for eggs. Most of the farms specialize in broiler chickens or eggs. The broiler industry is centered in the South. Egg farms are scattered throughout the country. Nearly half the poultry farms grow no crops. The great majority of poultry farms buy most or all of their feed.

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Other specialized livestock farms raise horses, mules, goats, rabbits, minks, chinchillas, bees, or fish. Usually, only domesticated (tame) animals are regarded as livestock. Minks, chinchillas, bees, and fish are not domesticated. But farms that raise them are often classed as livestock farms.

Farmers raise horses mainly for riding and racing. They raise mules to be work animals. Goats are raised for milk and wool, and rabbits for meat and fur. Farmers raise minks and chinchillas for their valuable fur. They keep bees for honey. Fish farms produce food fish, especially catfish, pompano, and trout. Farmers raise the fish in ponds and use special feeding methods to make them grow bigger and faster than they do in the wild.

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Mixed farms

About 5 percent of the farms in the United States produce a variety of crops and livestock. These mixed, or diversified, farms differ greatly from the mixed farms of the 1700's and 1800's. Like specialized farms, today's mixed farms are operated for profit and raise the kinds of crops and livestock that are best suited to their region. In the Midwest, for example, the typical mixed farm raises beef cattle, hogs, and cash grains. The typical mixed farm in the South produces beef cattle, peanuts, and tobacco.

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Modern crop production

This section discusses how farmers grow field crops scientifically. Field crops are grown on more than 95 percent of the harvested cropland in the United States, and most of them are raised in a similar manner. The science of field crop production is called agronomy. In many cases, farmers must use special methods to grow fruits, vegetables, and nuts. The science of growing these crops is called horticulture. The articles Fruit and Gardening discuss horticultural methods. But fruits and vegetables grown in large fields are raised in much the same way as any field crop.

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Basic principles of crop production

All crops require nutrients (nourishing substances) and water to grow. Soil supplies most of the nutrients. It also stores the water that the crops need. Crops take root in the soil and absorb the nutrients and water through their roots.

Crops differ, however, in the amount of nutrients and water they require for healthy growth. A farmer must therefore make sure that the soil and water resources meet the needs of each crop. A farmer must also plan measures to control pests, which could damage or ruin a crop. Most farmers plan their methods of soil and water management and of pest control well in advance of the growing season.

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Soil management. Soil consists chiefly of mineral particles mixed with decaying organic (plant and animal) matter. Chemical reactions involving these substances produce most of the nutrients that crops need. But some of the most important chemical reactions, such as the decay of organic matter, require the help of certain microbes. To be fertile, therefore, soil must consist of the right mixture of minerals, organic matter, and helpful microbes. It must also have the proper amounts of air and water. A plant's roots need air to function properly, and some microbes need air to survive. Too much water in the soil reduces the supply of air and so drowns the plant roots and destroys helpful microbes. Too little water deprives crops of moisture.

Plants need 16 nutrients for healthy growth. The major nutrients are the elements calcium, carbon, hydrogen, magnesium, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, potassium, and sulfur. Most crops require relatively large amounts of these elements. Elements needed in lesser amounts are called trace elements. They are boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, and zinc. Water and air supply all the necessary carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The 13 other nutrients must come from the soil. But plants differ somewhat in their food requirements, and so the need for particular nutrients varies from one kind of crop to another.

After deciding which crops to grow, farmers analyze their soil to learn if any nutrients are insufficient or lacking. To get an accurate analysis, most farmers send samples of the soil to a soil-testing laboratory. The test results help farmers plan a scientific fertilizer program for their crops. Chemical companies provide fertilizers for almost any crop requirement. Most crops absorb large amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, and so most commercial fertilizers consist chiefly of these elements.

The richest soil lies at and just below the surface. If this topsoil is not protected, it may be blown away by strong winds or washed away by heavy rains—a process called erosion. Effective soil management therefore also includes methods of soil conservation. These methods are discussed later in this section.

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Water management. Crops cannot grow without water. In most cases, farmers rely entirely on rainfall for the necessary moisture. In extremely dry areas, however, farmers must irrigate their crops. For a detailed discussion of irrigation techniques, see the Irrigation article.

Where rainfall is light or uncertain, many farmers practice dryland farming. In dryland farming, part of the cropland is left fallow (unplanted) each year. The fallow soil can store moisture for a crop the following year. Wheat is the main crop grown by dryland farming.

Many farms often have too much water rather than too little. In most instances, the problem is greatest on low-lying land and on land crossed by streams or rivers. Fields that tend to collect water must have a drainage system. Most drainage systems consist of lengths of tile pipe buried 3 to 4 feet (0.9 to 1.2 meters) below the surface of the field. Excess moisture filters through cracks in the pipe and then flows to open drainage ditches at the edge of the field.

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Pest control. Agronomists use the word pests in referring to weeds, plant diseases, and insects that threaten crops. Most farmers control pests with chemicals called pesticides. Scientists have developed hundreds of pesticides for use on farms. Each one is designed to fight certain types of weeds, plant diseases, or harmful insects. All pesticides must be used with extreme care. If they are used improperly, they may pollute the environment or the food supply and so endanger the health of people and animals. To help prevent this problem, the U.S. government sets and enforces standards for the manufacture, sale, and use of pesticides.

Farmers also use other methods of pest control in addition to pesticides. For example, turning the soil with a plow or mechanical cultivator kills most weeds. However, special pesticides called herbicides control weeds more thoroughly than does soil turning. Some herbicides remain active in the soil for some time and so kill weed seedlings as they develop. Through crossbreeding, plant scientists have developed varieties of corn, wheat, and other crops that are more resistant to diseases and insects than were earlier varieties. Scientists have also developed crops that are genetically engineered to resist certain pests.

Farmers may also use a system known as integrated pest management to control pests. This system may use any of several methods. One method uses crop rotation, the planting of different crops in the same location from year to year. Another involves spraying a synthetic pheromone on a crop to keep certain pests from mating (see Pheromone). In yet another method, farmers may increase the population of a pest's natural predator in the area where a crop is planted.

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Basic methods of crop production

Crop farming involves at least five separate operations: (1) preparing the soil, (2) planting, (3) cultivating, (4) harvesting, and (5) processing and storage. Modern farm equipment can perform each of these operations easily and quickly. One of the most important items of equipment is the tractor, which is used to pull or push other field machinery. The use of modern farming equipment—and of improved plant varieties and fertilizers—has enabled American farmers to produce bigger and bigger harvests with less and less labor.

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Preparing the soil. The main purpose of soil preparation is to make a seedbed—that is, an area of soil in which seeds can be planted and in which they will sprout, take root, and grow. Most farmers make the seedbed by an age-old process called tillage. Tillage involves digging into the soil and mixing it.

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Tillage loosens the soil, kills weeds, and improves the circulation of the water and air in the soil. Plows are the chief tillage devices. The most widely used plows are moldboard plows. The bottom of a moldboard plow is built to turn over about the top 8 inches (20 centimeters) of soil. This clean plowing buries most weeds and other plant remains that were on the surface. See Plow (The moldboard plow bottom).

At plowing time, most farm fields are scattered with dead stalks, leaves, and other plant residues from the preceding crop. Other fields may have a cover crop, such as alfalfa or grass. Plant residues and cover crops help protect soil from erosion. They also enrich the soil with nutrients if they are plowed under. Microbes cause the buried plant matter to decay. The decayed matter provides nutrients.

In many areas, the topsoil is too thin or too fragile for clean plowing. Farmers then use a chisel plow, a harrow, or a cultivator to break up the soil without turning it over completely. This method kills fewer weeds than clean plowing does. But it leaves more plant matter on the surface and so helps reduce erosion. This kind of plowing is called conservation tillage. Other plowing methods also help conserve soil. On sloping land, for example, farmers plow across, rather than up and down, the slope. The plowed soil forms ridges across the slope, which helps prevent erosion by rain water. Such plowing is called contour plowing.

Other plowing methods also help conserve soil. On sloping land, for example, farmers plow across, rather than up and down, the slope. The plowed soil forms ridges across the slope, which helps prevent erosion by rain water. Such plowing is called contour plowing.

Soil that has been completely turned over in plowing often remains stuck together in large chunks. Most farmers, therefore, also use a device called a harrow. A harrow has sharp teeth or disks that break the chunks of soil into smaller pieces. Many farmers attach a harrow to the back of a plow. Many farmers add fertilizers and pesticides to the soil during harrowing. The pesticides may be distributed by equipment attached to the plow. In some cases, farmers apply fertilizers and pesticides to the soil before they till it.

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No-till and reduced tillage involves preparing a seedbed with no or little tilling. In the no-till system, residues from the preceding crop are left on the field as a covering called a mulch. Farmers spray the mulch with a herbicide and apply fertilizer. Rain water washes the chemicals down through the mulch and into the soil. In most cases, no further soil preparation is necessary. The seedbed is ready for planting.

The no-till method improves on traditional tillage systems in several ways. For example, the mulch helps prevent erosion and helps keep moisture in the soil. By eliminating plowing and harrowing, the method saves both time and tractor fuel. However, no-till may have certain disadvantages. Some weeds are not killed by herbicides, and so weed control may become a problem. Planting may be delayed because the mulch tends to keep fields cooler and moister than is desirable at the start of the growing season. In addition, the heavy use of herbicides may cause environmental problems.

Few U.S. farmers used no-till until herbicides became readily available in the 1960's. Today, a growing number of farmers use the method. Many other farmers have adopted a reduced or conservation tillage system.

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Planting. American farmers plant certain types of barley, oats, and wheat in the fall. The plants begin to develop before the growing season ends and then rest during the winter. The young plants start to grow again in the spring and are ready to be harvested by midsummer. Except in the warmest regions of the country, however, farmers plant most crops in the spring after the danger of frost has passed.

Nearly all the field crops grown in the United States are planted by machines called planters or drills. These machines cut furrows (narrow grooves) in the soil, drop seeds into each furrow, and cover the seeds with soil—all in one operation. Planters plant several rows of corn, cotton, and sorghum seeds at a time. These rows are 15 inches (38 centimeters) or more apart. Drills plant crops in rows 7 to 10 inches (18 to 24 centimeters) apart. These crops include the small grains, such as barley, oats, and wheat. Soybeans can be planted in either narrow or wide rows. Planters and drills designed for no-tillage operations are similar to conventional drills. However, they also have sharp blades that slice through the mulch so that the furrows can be dug.

Farmers use special planting methods to help conserve soil. On sloping land, for example, crops are often planted in long strips between bands of thick clover or grass. The clover or grass helps slow the flow of rain water down the slope. This method of planting is called strip cropping.

Some fertilizers and pesticides are applied to the soil during planting. Equipment to distribute the chemicals may be attached to the seed drill.

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Cultivating. Herbicides applied before or during planting kill many kinds of weeds, but not all. Some weeds may therefore develop with the crops. In most cases, weeds are not a problem in small-grain fields because the plants grow close together. In fields where row crops are grown, however, weeds can multiply rapidly between rows. Farmers control such weeds with cultivators. These devices stir the soil between rows and so uproot and bury any weeds.

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Harvesting. Nearly all farmers in the United States harvest their field crops with machines. They use combines to harvest most grain and seed crops, including barley, corn, rice, soybeans, and wheat. A combine performs several tasks. First, it cuts the plant stalks. Then, it threshes the cuttings—that is, separates the grain or seeds from the straw and other residues. The combine returns the residues to the ground and collects the grain or seeds in a tank or bin. Some farmers harvest corn with special machines. The machines pick the ears from the stalks but do not remove the grain from the ears. The grain is removed later. The grain is then processed to make livestock feed. In the case of sweet corn, the ears are left whole and sold for human consumption.

Special machines are also used to harvest other field crops, including peanuts, potatoes, and sugar beets. Some machines mow such crops as alfalfa and clover. The mowed crops are left on the ground, where they dry and become hay. Machines called hay balers gather the hay and bind it into bales.

Some farmers harvest green grain or grass to make a kind of livestock feed called silage. To make silage, the entire plant is harvested and then chopped up. Some silage machines harvest the crop and chop up the plants in one operation.

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Processing and storage. Crops raised to supply food for human beings are called food crops. Many food crops tend to spoil quickly, and so farmers ship these crops to market as soon as possible after harvesting. Food grains, however, can be stored for months on farms that have the proper facilities. Before grain is stored, it must be dried. Most farms that store large amounts of grain have grain-drying equipment and large storage bins.

Crops raised to supply feed for livestock are called feed crops. Hay, silage, soybeans, and such grains as corn and sorghum are the principal feed crops. Corn, wheat, and soybeans are used for both food and livestock feed. Hay must be kept dry until it is used, and so it is usually stored in barns. Unlike hay, silage must be kept moist. Most farmers store it in airtight structures called silos. Soybeans must be specially processed to produce meal for livestock feed. Most farmers buy soybean meal ready-made from commercial suppliers who have removed the oil from the soybeans to use it for food products and other purposes (see Soybean [Soybean products]). Many farmers have equipment for milling feed grains other than soybeans. Corn is often fed to hogs without any processing.

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Special crop-growing methods include (1) organic farming and (2) hydroponics. Organic farming is the practice of raising crops without the use of synthetic chemicals. Hydroponics is the science of growing crops in water.

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Organic farming. American farmers depend heavily on chemical fertilizers and pesticides. However, these chemicals can cause soil and water pollution if they are overused or used improperly (see Environmental pollution [Water pollution] [Soil pollution]). In extreme cases, the chemicals may also enter the food or water supply and so directly endanger people's health. For these reasons, some people believe that farmers should use organic farming methods whenever possible.

Organic farming relies on natural substances rather than on synthetic chemicals to fertilize the soil and control pests. Manure (wastes from animals) is the most widely used organic fertilizer. It is readily available on farms that raise livestock. However, most specialized crop farms raise too few livestock to provide enough manure for fertilizer.

Many farmers rotate their crops from year to year to reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. The rotation crop is usually a legume, such as alfalfa or soybeans. Unlike corn, wheat, and most other crops, legumes restore nitrogen to the soil. If corn or wheat is grown in a field one year, a legume may be grown in the field the next year to replace part of the nitrogen used by the corn or wheat. See Nitrogen cycle.

Crop rotation also helps control insect pests and plant diseases. Most insects and disease-causing microbes are attracted only to particular crops. If the same kind of crop is grown in the same field year after year, the insects and microbes attracted to that crop can multiply out of control. But they gradually die out if a crop they are not attracted to is grown in the field for one or more years.

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Hydroponics involves growing crops in large tanks filled either with water or with sand or gravel covered with water. Chemicals added to the water provide the nutrients that crops normally get from soil. Hydroponics has certain advantages over the growing of crops in soil. For example, the tanks can be kept in a greenhouse, and so crop losses due to pests or bad weather can largely be prevented. But hydroponics is unsuited to large-scale crop production. Its commercial importance is therefore limited. See Hydroponics.

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Modern livestock production

In the past, almost all the chores on livestock farms were done by hand. These chores included milking the cows, gathering eggs, feeding all the animals, and cleaning the livestock buildings of animal wastes. Farmers had to do many of these tasks once or twice a day every day of the year.

The chores on a livestock farm must still be done regularly. However, farmers now have machines to do most of the work. On most large farms, cows are milked by machines, and eggs roll into collection troughs automatically as soon as they are laid. Feed is distributed to the livestock buildings by conveyor belts or other machinery. Similar machinery keeps the buildings cleared of manure.

The use of machines has enabled livestock farmers to raise many more animals than they could in the past. In addition, improvements in livestock breeds and in livestock care have greatly increased the amount of eggs, meat, or milk that an animal can produce. The output of livestock and livestock products in the United States has more than doubled since the early 1900's—and with less than one-fourth the labor.

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Basic principles of livestock production

To raise livestock successfully, farmers must provide the animals with the proper care. They must also select certain animals for breeding (reproductive) purposes to replace the animals that are marketed or that outgrow their usefulness.

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Livestock care consists of providing feed and shelter for the animals and safeguarding their health. The success of a livestock farm largely depends on how skillfully the farmer does each of these jobs.

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Feed. Livestock feeds can be divided into two main groups: (1) forage and (2) feed concentrates. Forage consists of plants that livestock graze on or that have been cut to make hay or silage. Forage supplies livestock mainly with roughage (coarse food). Feed concentrates consist chiefly of feed grains, such as corn and sorghum, and soybean meal. They supply much food energy and little roughage. In most cases, the grain is milled and mixed with vitamins and minerals. Some farmers also add synthetic hormones (growth-regulating chemicals) to feed concentrates to stimulate their animals' growth. Some farmers produce their own concentrates. Others buy them from commercial suppliers.

The digestive system of cattle and sheep enables them to convert forage into the protein and other nutrients they require. These animals can therefore live mainly on forage. Sheep get most of their forage by grazing. Cattle can also get forage by grazing. However, cattle or sheep that are confined, either indoors or outdoors, are fed hay or silage. Although these animals can live on forage, farmers also feed them concentrates to ensure a balanced diet. Cattle and sheep that are being prepared for slaughter are usually fed large amounts of concentrates. The high-energy content of such a diet helps finish (fatten) the animals quickly. Unlike cattle and sheep, hogs and poultry cannot digest forage efficiently. They are therefore raised chiefly on concentrates.

Most livestock farms require great quantities of prepared feed. A herd of about 40 dairy cows, for example, may eat as much as 2 tons (1.8 metric tons) of hay and other feed each day. An egg farm with about 20,000 laying hens uses about 2 ¹/2 tons (2.3 metric tons) of feed concentrates daily.

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Shelter. Most kinds of livestock need protection against extremely cold weather. Mature beef cattle and sheep, however, are less affected by the cold than are the majority of livestock. Ranchers may keep these animals on open rangeland throughout the year. Most other farmers provide shelter for their animals at least part of the time. Some livestock, including most poultry, are raised entirely indoors.

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Health care for livestock has been made much easier by the development of vaccines and other modern drugs. Before these drugs were available, such diseases as anthrax and hog cholera killed large numbers of livestock. Farmers now prevent many kinds of diseases by having their animals vaccinated. Animals that have infectious diseases can be treated with penicillin and other germ-killing antibiotics. Farmers sometimes add antibiotics to livestock feed as a preventive measure.

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Livestock breeding. Most farm animals are raised to provide livestock products. However, farmers also raise breeding stock—that is, animals of superior quality which are used mainly to produce offspring. In many cases, the offspring will inherit their parents' qualities, such as superior size and weight or exceptional milk- or egg-producing ability. Farmers select animals to be breeding stock on the basis of their qualities and those of their offspring. For example, a cow that gives much milk and whose daughter does the same may be removed from the milk herd and placed in the breeding herd. Over a period of years, such selective breeding can greatly improve the quality of all the animals on a farm. For detailed information about livestock breeding, see Livestock (Breeding livestock).

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Basic methods of livestock production

Livestock production involves three main types of operations. They are (1) livestock grazing, (2) livestock finishing, and (3) confinement operations.

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Livestock grazing. About 55 percent of all U.S. farmland is used for the grazing of livestock, especially beef cattle and sheep. Most of this land is native grassland. The rest is pasture. Pastures are fields of cultivated grasses or other forage crops. They are used mainly to graze dairy cattle. In regions with enough rainfall, many farmers who raise beef cattle or sheep also have pastures for their animals.

Most of the grassland used to graze beef cattle and sheep is on ranches in the western half of the United States. However, ranches do not produce enough grain or other high-energy feed to finish the animals for slaughter. Most ranchers therefore ship their meat animals to other farms for finishing after the animals are 5 to 12 months old. Sheep raised for wool live mainly on grass, and so these animals remain on the ranch.

Dairy cows do not have to be fattened. In most cases, they are allowed to graze in pastures when the weather permits. Dairy farmers supply the cows with any additional feed they need for efficient milk production.

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Livestock finishing, or fattening, depends on the large-scale use of feed concentrates. Most livestock finishing therefore takes place in major grain-producing areas. Hog farms, for example, are highly specialized finishing operations. The great majority of these farms are in the chief corn-producing states, such as Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska.

Some farmers finish beef cattle, hogs, or sheep that they have raised from birth. Many others sell their young animals for finishing, either to farmers who have excess feed grain or to feed lots. Feed lots specialize in finishing young beef cattle or sheep. The animals are kept in pens and fed large amounts of feed concentrates. The largest feed lots finish hundreds of animals at a time.

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Confinement operations mass-produce certain kinds of livestock and livestock products. The largest operations produce poultry and eggs. Feed lots are a form of confinement operation. However, most feed lots are simply areas of open land that have been fenced in and divided into large pens. The animals can roam about freely inside the pens. In a full confinement operation, the animals are kept inside a building in small pens or cages that limit their movements. The animals therefore use less energy by not moving about and so produce more meat or other products.

Many confinement buildings have enclosures for hundreds or even thousands of animals. Most of these buildings are equipped with automatic machinery that brings feed to the animals and clears away their wastes. In the United States, nearly all broiler chickens and a large share of laying hens are raised in confinement. A growing number of American farmers also use confinement techniques to raise hogs, beef cattle, and dairy cattle.

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Farming as a business

The United States today has about 2,200,000 farms, compared with about 6,500,000 in the 1930's. Yet the nation's total farm output is far greater today than ever before. Much of this increase in production is due to efficient management. Businesslike farming therefore not only earns profits for farmers but also helps meet, and even exceed, the ever-increasing demand for food.

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Farm owners and farm operators

Since 1945, the average size of U.S. farms has more than doubled—from 195 acres (79 hectares) to 435 acres (176 hectares). At the same time, the average cost of a farm has increased nearly 60 times. Today, the typical farm requires an investment of $300,000 to $600,000 or more, depending on the type and location of the farm. Most of the investment is in real estate. The rest is chiefly in supplies and equipment.

Most of the nation's farms are owned by individuals. In many cases, the owners also operate their farms. Other owners rent all or part of their land. More than half of all U.S. farmland is rented. Some farmers, called tenant farmers, rent all their land. Many other farmers rent part of their land and own the rest.

Some farms are owned by business partnerships or by corporations rather than by individuals. In a partnership, two or more people combine their resources to buy and operate a business. The partners then share the profits or the losses. The majority of farm partnerships consist of two or more members of a farm family.

Farms owned by corporations are called corporate farms. Most corporate farms, like most farm partnerships, are formed by farm families. A family corporate farm provides certain tax benefits that individual ownership and partnerships do not offer. The benefits are usually small, however, unless a farm has an exceptionally high income. The majority of family corporate farms have an income well above the average.

Some corporate farms are owned by stock corporations, such as food-processing firms and feed manufacturers. The food-processing companies and feed manufacturers own such farms to supply the products that the companies process. The farms are operated by hired managers or by tenants and have a high average income.

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Farm management

Farm management includes everything that farmers do to make farming profitable. To make a profit, farmers must sell their goods for more money than it costs to produce them. Farmers try to keep production costs as low as possible. They also try to find the highest-paying markets for their products. However, farm production costs have been increasing much faster than market prices. Farmers regularly borrow money to finance their operations. As farm production costs increase, the average debt per farm also increases.

Expert management helps lessen some of the financial risks of farming. But farmers have little or no control over risks caused by the weather. Crops can be damaged or ruined by heavy rains at planting time or during the harvest season. A drought, flood, severe hail, or frost can destroy a crop at any time. A sudden cold spell or violent storm can endanger livestock on ranges or in pastures. Hazards like these can wipe out an entire year's profit. They thus make efficient farm management all the more important. An efficiently run farm should earn enough profit in most years to survive an occasional loss because of bad weather.

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Managing production costs. The average cost of running a farm in the United States increased over 400 percent from 1969 to 1997—and the cost continues to climb rapidly. The steep rise in farm expenses was caused partly by inflation, until inflation reached more moderate levels in the mid-1980's. Higher prices for farm inputs (purchased production materials and equipment, and interest paid on borrowed money) add to the cost of farming. But the rising costs are mainly due to the fact that farmers have greatly increased their use of such inputs as chemical fertilizers and pesticides, fuel, and machinery. Farmers depend on these inputs to expand production, and so their costs cannot be sharply reduced without lowering productivity. Farmers must thus manage their production costs carefully to ensure a profit.

Production costs are usually figured in terms of the cost per unit of the product. To find this figure, farmers add up the estimated cost of all the inputs they will need to produce a certain amount of their product—for example, 1,000 bushels of corn. They then divide the total cost by 1,000 to find the cost per bushel. Farmers compare the estimated cost per unit with the estimated selling price per unit to learn if the product can earn a profit. Sometimes, the unit cost may have to be reduced to show a profit. Farmers reduce unit costs by cutting expenses and by making their farms more productive.

Many farmers lower expenses by joining a purchasing cooperative. Purchasing cooperatives provide their members with farm materials and equipment at reduced prices. Nevertheless, most modern farm equipment is still increasingly expensive. Many farmers therefore rent equipment that they use only once or twice a year. Such equipment includes seed drills and combines.

In many cases, farmers have to increase their inputs to increase productivity. They can often make up for the added expense of the inputs if they make better use of their resources. For example, efficient methods of soil and water management can help expand a farm's total output at little or no added cost. The higher output lowers the cost per unit and thus raises the profit.

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Marketing farm products. Some farmers sell directly to food-processing companies, stores, or consumers. This marketing method is not particularly desirable, however, because a farmer may have difficulty finding the highest-paying buyers. For this reason, many farmers belong to marketing cooperatives. A marketing cooperative finds the best markets for its members' products.

Cooperatives assure farmers of a market, but they do not usually guarantee a specific selling price. If the supply of a product exceeds the demand, the price normally falls. American farms often produce a surplus, and so farmers risk having their profit reduced or wiped out by falling prices.

Farmers can nearly eliminate marketing risks by an arrangement called contract farming. In contract farming, a farmer signs a contract with a food-processing or food-distributing firm. In most cases, the firm agrees to pay a certain price for a specified amount of the farmer's product. Much of the nation's broiler chickens, eggs, fruits, milk, and vegetables are produced under such agreements. However, contract farming has not won enthusiastic approval of all farmers. Many contracts specify which farming methods the farmer must use. Most farmers prefer to make such decisions themselves. In addition, farmers who sell on contract cannot benefit if market prices rise.

Many farmers sell beef cattle, hogs, and sheep at auction markets. The buyers at a livestock auction bid on the animals, and the animals are sold to the highest bidder. For more information about livestock marketing methods, see Livestock (Marketing livestock).

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Financing farm operations. Production costs are so high that most American farmers cannot afford to pay them all out of annual earnings. Instead, they must regularly borrow money to finance their operations. About 10 percent of U.S. farms have a debt to asset ratio (relationship of money owed to property owned) of 40 percent or more. This figure indicates that these farms may be in serious financial trouble. Farmers pay back part of their debt each year, plus interest. The interest becomes an added production expense. Several thousand farms are sold or go bankrupt each year, and a serious financial crisis has developed in the U.S. farming community.

Farmers often borrow small sums from commercial banks. For large loans, most farmers deal with cooperatives. A farmer who belongs to a lending cooperative can borrow funds at reduced interest. The largest cooperatives are part of a nationwide system supervised by the Farm Credit Administration, an agency of the federal government. For more information on these cooperatives, see Farm Credit System. Another federal agency, the Farm Service Agency, provides small, low-interest loans for farmers who cannot get funds from other sources (see Farmers Home Administration).

Many farmers buy insurance policies for protection against severe financial losses. Most of the policies insure farmers against crop losses due to bad weather or other natural hazards. The U.S. Department of Agriculture helps insurance companies provide such insurance. However, most crop insurance policies give farmers only partial protection. A serious crop loss is costly even to insured farmers.

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Obtaining management assistance. To manage a farm successfully, a person needs a variety of skills. A crop farmer must have thorough knowledge of agronomy, including soil science and plant biology. Livestock farmers must know the principles of animal nutrition, animal breeding, and veterinary medicine. Every farmer has to be familiar with bookkeeping and other accounting techniques and with agricultural economics, including marketing and financing. Farmers need engineering skills to operate and service modern farm machinery. Farming requires so much specialized knowledge that most young people who plan to become farmers attend an agricultural college.

Farmers can get assistance from various public and private agencies. Every state has an extension service and nearly every county in the United States has extension agents, which provide management help for farmers. Both are part of the Cooperative Extension System, a partnership of federal, state, and county governments. Many farmers go to a county agent for up-to-date information about farming methods. County agents get much of their information from research centers sponsored by state agricultural colleges and the United States Department of Agriculture.

Many farmers us the Internet to make use of data provided by agricultural colleges or other information centers. These sources may provide current information on such topics as farming methods, plant diseases, and crop values.

A growing number of private firms provide management assistance for farmers. Unlike government agencies, a private consulting firm charges a fee for its services. Several hundred agricultural periodicals are published in the United States. Some print articles of general interest to farmers. But most deal with specialized subjects, from poultry breeding to soil conservation.

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Farm income

Farm income consists chiefly of earnings from the sale of products plus payments from government farm programs. In the middle of the first decade of the 2000's, the annual income per farm in the United States averaged about $30,000 after the payment of all expenses. Many farms have an income well above the average, but the majority have a below-average income or no income after expenses.

Most farm families cannot live on the money they make from farming. As a result, the great majority of farmers have other sources of income in addition to their farm earnings. Many farmers hold jobs as factory workers, truckdrivers, salespeople, teachers, or business executives. Farmers also earn outside income from the rental of property and from other investments. About two-thirds of all farmers earn at least half their personal income from nonfarm sources.

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Federal farm programs

United States farms often produce surpluses of major crops. Such surpluses can help lower consumer food prices. But the lower prices can reduce farm income severely.

In the 1930's, the U.S. government established programs designed to protect farms from the impact of surpluses. Measures were taken to prevent closure of farms and the food shortage that might result. The government set minimum prices that farmers received for selected key farm products. It kept prices from falling below the minimum levels through price support programs. The government would buy products from farmers at the minimum prices if market prices fell much below these levels. Food purchased by the government could be used for public aid and disaster relief programs.

Price support programs were often tied to acreage allotments. To take part in the programs, farmers were required to restrict the acreage they used to grow certain crops. In addition to qualifying for price supports, these farmers received payments for the crops they might have grown, but did not. Acreage allotments were designed to balance farm production with demand.

In 1996, the government passed the "freedom to farm law," which was designed to eliminate the link between prices and support payments for major crops. The law called for payments to be made based on past plantings of several crops over a seven-year period at a fixed rate that would be reduced annually. Crops covered in this plan included corn, cotton, rice, and wheat. Farmers could then plant a crop other than the one for which they were receiving payments. The law retained price supports for some specialized crops, but reduced the minimum prices. It also eliminated payments that had been made to farmers in exchange for limiting crop production. However, such factors as larger grain supplies and international financial conditions resulted in increases in farm subsidies between 1996 and 2001 rather than decreases.

A federal law passed in 2002 continued fixed annual payments to grain and cotton farms. It also established new price support programs for grain and cotton and raised minimum prices for many crops.

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Farm organizations

A number of private organizations work to promote the interests of American farmers. Some of the organizations represent the interests of farmers in general. These general farm organizations include the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Farmers Organization, the National Farmers Union, and the National Grange. Farmers who specialize in a particular product have formed commodity organizations to promote their interests. Each commodity organization represents a certain group of farmers, such as cattle producers or wheat growers. The general farm organizations and the commodity organizations both work to promote farm programs and legislation that they consider favorable.

Several labor unions represent the interests of hired farmworkers. Many such workers are migrants. Migrant laborers move from one farming region to another to help harvest crops, especially vegetables and fruits. The United Farm Workers of America is the chief labor union for migrant workers.

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