Farm Production Expenditures Report
U.S. Total Farm Production Expenditures totaled $287.4 billion in 2009, down from $307.0 billion in 2008, USAgNet reports. This is the first major decline of farm expenditures since 1986. The 2009 Total Expenditures fell 6.4%, compared to the 2008 rise of 8.3%. Total Expenditures for 2008 remain unchanged from a year ago. Two expense items showing increases from the previous year were: rent, up 0.9%, and seed and plants, up 2.6%.
The decreasing cost of crude oil contributed to the drop of Fertilizer and Agricultural Chemicals in 2009. Expenditures with the largest percentage drop were: fuels, down 22.5%; other farm machinery, down 20.3%; tractors and self propelled machinery, down 18.4%; farm improvements, down 10.8%; and fertilizer, lime and soil conditioners, down 10.7%.
In 2009, the U.S. Total Farm Expenditure average per farm was $131,137 compared with $140,075 in 2008, a decrease of 6.4%. On average, U.S. farm operations spent: $20,533 on feed, $16,609 on farm services, $13,141 on labor, $11,818 on livestock and poultry purchases, $9,171 on fertilizer, lime and soil conditioners, and $10,312 on rent.
For 2008, U.S. farms spent an average of: $21,398 on feed, $17,337 on farm services, $12,912 on livestock and poultry purchases, $13,550 on labor, and $10,220 on rent. Average 2009 Total Expenditures for the largest economic class of farms ($5 million and over) were $10.3 million. That is 6.2 times larger than the next largest economic class with farms $1,000,000 to $4,999,999 averaging $1.7 million, followed by the $500,000 to $999,999 economic class of farms averaging $0.7 million.
Total Expenditures by region were down for all five regions in 2009. The Atlantic had the largest decrease at 8.7%, followed by the Plains down 8.4%. Total Expenditures for the South decreased 7.8%; the West decreased 6.1%; and the Midwest decreased only 3.5%. The Midwest region contributed the most to U.S. Total Expenditures with expenses of $88.2 billion, 30.7%, down from $91.4 billion in 2008.