10 Things to Know About Agribusiness

• According to the United States Department of Agriculture’s 2007 Census of Agriculture, there were 2,204,792 farms in the United States, an increase of 4 percent from 2002.
• The average farm in the United States has 418 acres and $135,000 in sales, according to the U.S.D.A.’s 2007 Census of Agriculture.
• Agriculture is considered to be one of the top 12 industries poised for growth over the next 10 years, according to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.)’s 2013 “Overview & Outlook for the P/C Insurance Industry.”
• The government has supported agriculture financially since the 1930s but the success of crop insurance has helped farmers today become more self-sufficient than in the past. (I.I.I.)
• The federal crop insurance program covered more than 280 million acres in 2012. (I.I.I.)
• The U.S.D.A. is working on a program to help small and underserved farmers understand crop insurance and other tools needed to effectively manage risk. (I.I.I.)
• Livestock insurance, which allows policyholders to lock in prices for animals to be sold for slaughter, is now available in all states where livestock is farmed. (I.I.I.)
• There are currently 18 crop insurance companies. (I.I.I.)
• Crop insurance claim payouts in 2012 totaled nearly $17 billion and claims in 2011 were $10.9 billion. (I.I.I.)
• The price of corn, soybeans, wheat and cotton reached record levels in 2011.

Topics USA Agribusiness