Costs of Running a Farm Hold Steady
Friday, August 4th, 2017 -- 9:09 AM
(Wisconsin Ag Connection) -The cost of running an average-sized farm operation in Wisconsin was about the same last year compared to 2015.According to the USDA, total state farm production expenditures were estimated at $10.9 billion in both 2015 and 2016. That's down 16 percent from the record high of $13 billion set in 2014. Feed costs represented the largest single production expense for Wisconsin farmers last year at $1.95 billion. Ag economists say nearly half of the areas on the expense column rose on the annual report, but the largest category decrease found in miscellaneous capital expenses, which fell by 50-percent after skyrocketing by 250 percent just two years prior. Other decreases were found in property taxes, fuel, tractors and self-propelled equipment, other machinery, seeds & plants, automobiles, interest expense, fertilizer, lime and chemicals.
By the numbers, expenditures per Wisconsin farm averaged $158,806 in 2016, compared with $188,345 the previous year. The average operation spent $28,384 on feed, $22,562 on farm services, $10,335 on fertilizer, and $15,575 on labor. Meanwhile, expenditures for a Midwestern farm averaged $187,289 last year--down by nearly $6,250 from 2015. Nationally, farm production expenditures totaled $346.9 billion in 2016, down 4.4 percent from 2015. Expenditures per U.S. farm averaged $169,035 last year, compared with $176,181 in 2015. On average, American farms spent $27,092 on feed, $19,491 on livestock, poultry and related expenses, $20,319 on farm services, and $16,616 on labor.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.