Profitability keeps the smaller independent farms in operation. Many of today's farmers want to remain independent of large company farms but are struggling financially to do so. According to John Ikerd, professor of agricultural economics at the University of Missouri-Columbia, fewer than 2 percent of Americans are called farmers today and less than half of that number view farming as their primary occupation. The average American spends little more than a dime of each earned dollar on food, and the farmer receives only a penny of that dime, according to Ikerd. The remainder pays for processing and marketing costs.
Many people are unaware of the importance of agriculture in our society.
Today, we have more hogs than 10 years ago, but we have fewer independent farms. There is no question that agriculture is important to Missouri and to Missourians. In 1998, there were 110,000 farms in Missouri, according to the Missouri Department of Agriculture's 1999 Farm Facts. In fact, Missouri ranks second only to Texas in the number of farms. The move toward cooperatives serving independent family farms will help keep many of these 110,000 farms in operation.