Scott Smith, Regional
Economist
The 2012 Census of Agriculture is just that — a census. It is an attempt to count an entire population and generally does not use sampling or statistical techniques to make conclusions about the population. It is conducted every five years and includes all farm operators regardless of whether farming is their primary or secondary occupation. Operators and hired laborers are combined for a total count. There can be a maximum of three operators per farm, but labor hired on a contract basis is not covered.
The Southeast Region agriculture is largely devoted to the
livestock business, this by raising cattle or growing hay. There is also some
wheat farming worth noting in San Juan County. 2012 net cash income per farm
for Grand County was -$3,725. The analogous figure for San Juan County was
-$1,522. The vast majority of farms have annual total sales less than $250,000.
Southeast Region 2012 employment was 1,679 jobs according to
the census (this number may slightly differ from other data presented because
of confidentiality issues). The state’s unemployment insurance data suggests
that a very small number of these jobs generate the income or possess the
duration to be considered “full time” employment in the urban sense. Further
data indicates that most farmers and ranchers are sole proprietors (regardless
of how they are organized for tax purposes). Finally, a comparison of the other
sources and the census figures shows that most individuals involved in
agriculture have their primary job in other sectors of the economy.
The size and composition of the agricultural workforce has
changed markedly over time. In 2002, the total Southeast Region agricultural
workforce was 839 workers, of which 40 percent was hired labor. That total
increased by 112 percent to 1,776 in 2007, yet the share of hired laborers fell
to 16 percent in the same period (although this statistic may be skewed
downward because of reporting issues). In 2012, the agricultural employment
count fell 5 percent to 1,679 and the share of hired labor increased slightly
to 20 percent.
In 2002, the labor cost per worker (as defined by dividing
annual labor expense by the hired workforce) was $1,270. In 2007, the cost had
fallen by 33 percent to $850. In 2012, this number had increased by 15 percent
to $980. In contrast, inflation increased by 15 percent and 9 percent as of
2007 and 2012, respectively.
There were 325 principal operators in the Southeast Region
in 2002 (the statistics refer to “principal” operator and therefore will not
agree with other totals). The number of operators increased to 848 in 2007,
which is an astounding 161 percent increase. The count dropped slightly to 827
in 2012. The share of operators relying on other sources of employment has been
remarkably constant. In 2002, the proportion was 41 percent. It dropped slightly
to 40 percent in 2007. The share then increased to 46 percent in the 2012 Census.
Analysts are unable to convincingly explain the employment
patterns with income statistics. One would expect to observe the number of
operators falling in concert with the decline in income. Similarly, one should
expect that operators would seek other sources of employment when income
declines. Farm income per operator was $2,723 in 2002, and then decreased 300
percent to -$2,085 in 2007. In 2012, income per operator declined another 19
percent with a total of -$1,738.
