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Is your county the Best Place to Farm?Is your county the Best Place to Farm?

Best Places to Farm: Farm Futures ranks 3,000-plus counties on financial performance, based on the recent U.S. Ag Census and proprietary data.

1 Min Read
2012, 2017 and 2022 Best Places to Farm maps
AG EVOLVES: Ag census data from 2012 and 2017 show how financial performance migrated across the U.S. Record grain prices in 2012 helped profits surge across the Corn Belt and Prairies, but weather and rising surpluses punished 2017 crop incomes. Poultry saved the day for the Southeast in 2022. NOTE: This is map was updated to correct the color coding for a few counties.

Editor's note: Farm Futures’ exclusive Best Places to Farm report ranks the financial performance of 3,056 counties. By analyzing proprietary data and the recently released results from USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture, Farm Futures averaged weighted ranks of the ratios on return on assets, profit margins and asset turnover for each county. How does your county rank? Visit the interactive map below to check the ranking of 3,056 counties and browse other stats.

In this latest installment of Best Places to Farm, high farmland prices slice into financial performance for producers across the country.

Farm Futures ranks the financial performance of 3,056 counties. By analyzing proprietary data and the recently released results from the 2022 U.S. Ag Census, Farm Futures averaged weighted ranks of the ratios on return on assets, profit margins and asset turnover for each county.

The results are surprising — until farmers and ag economist start digging into the numbers and applying their local economic factors.

You can dig in, too. Interact with the map below, or click to open the map in a new window. Look for the search symbol in the upper left corner where you can type in your county and see where you rank.

Learn more about Farm Futures' Best Places to Farm study by reading other stories in the series:

Related:Farm profit: New data reveals regional differences

About the Authors

Bryce Knorr

Contributing market analyst, Farm Futures

Bryce Knorr first joined Farm Futures Magazine in 1987. In addition to analyzing and writing about the commodity markets, he is a former futures introducing broker and Commodity Trading Advisor. A journalist with more than 45 years of experience, he received the Master Writers Award from the American Agricultural Editors Association.

Pam Caraway

Executive Editor, Farm Futures

Pam Caraway leads Farm Futures, the national business publication for Farm Progress dedicated to providing information that helps leading agricultural producers and their financial partners drive economic sustainability for family farms. Pam's experience spans 40 years of writing about farming for farmers, including newspapers, trade magazines and marketing for top-tier agricultural manufacturers. She holds a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of West Florida and a master's degree in digital marketing from Northern Illinois University.

Writing about farming is a dream job for this Air Force brat who considers the family dairy farm in upstate New York her childhood home. Her family returned to that area each time their RED HORSE member deployed to war - Vietnam, Korea, the Philippines. Her dad's military service also took the family to Washington State, Texas, Florida and Alaska. Pam's perspective is shaped by friends and family who work to maintain generational farming legacies. Her passion is to provide information that helps each one achieve their family farming goals.

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