February 21, 2024

USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service announced results of the 2022 Census of Agriculture, providing insights into demographics, economics, land use and activities on Illinois farms and ranches.
“Census of Agriculture data tell a story,” says Hubert Hamer, NASS administrator. “This comprehensive snapshot every five years helps data users to see trends and shifts in the industry over time and helps producers do business.”
Notable 2022 Illinois ag census data highlights include:
There were 71,123 farms and ranches in Illinois, down 2.1% from 2017, with an average size of 370 acres, down 0.5%, on 26.3 million acres of farmland, down 2.6%.
Illinois farms and ranches produced $26.4 billion in agricultural products, up from $17 billion in 2017.
Illinois farms had an average income of $140,625. Farms and ranches received total income of $27.8 billion, as farm production expenses rose to $17.8 billion, with $10 billion in net income.
Illinois farms with internet access continued to rise from 76.9% in 2017 to 79.1% in 2022.
In Illinois, 2,674 farms sold directly to consumers, with sales of $53 million. Value of sales increased 19.6% from 2017.
In Illinois, 11,655 farms had sales of $500,000 or more and sold $21.8 billion of all ag products in the state; 38,726 Illinois farms had sales of less than $50,000 and sold $327 million of all ag products in the state.
The average age of all Illinois producers was 58.6, up from 58 in 2017.
There were 32,538 Illinois farmers with 10 or fewer years of experience, with an average age of 46.4.
The number of Illinois producers under age 35 was 10,632, comprising 8.8% of all producers. The 8,270 Illinois farms with young producers making decisions tend to be larger than average in both acres and sales.
There were 33,927 female producers, accounting for 28% of all Illinois producers.
“Overall, though there are always changes across U.S. agriculture, the data remain largely consistent with the previous ag census,” Hamer says. “Data users will also notice some new data on the topics of hemp, precision agriculture and internet access.”
The national response rate for the 2022 Census of Agriculture was 61%; more than 40% of responses were submitted online. The data contains overs 6 million data points about America’s farms and ranches and the people who operate them, down to the county level.
The full Census of Agriculture report as well as publication dates for additional ag census data products can be found at nass.usda.gov/AgCensus. Ag census data can also be found in NASS’ searchable online database, Quick Stats.
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