Number Of Farms Down, Size Grows

A new government report shows the number of Kansas farms is shrinking while those that remain are getting larger.

The Agriculture Department on Friday released its final 2012 Census of Agriculture showing Kansas had 61,773 farms that year, down 6 percent from the 2007 census.

Kansas land in farms was unchanged at 46.1 million acres. But the size of the average Kansas farm grew 6 percent over the five-year period to 747 acres, an increase of about 40 acres.

The report also said Kansas farmers are getting older, with principal operators averaging 58.2 years old in 2012. That compares with an average age of 57.7 five years earlier.

The 2012 market value of production was up 28 percent from 2007, at $18.5 billion.