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The Many Values of Agriculture

Some key attributes of agriculture include:

Economics: Agriculture is important to the economies of many states and the nation. It makes up a major share of our economic exports to other countries and is one of the major reasons the U.S. trade deficit is not higher. Other contributing economic segments — such as food wholesaling and retailing — pump billions of dollars to the U.S. economy and account for several million jobs. For example:

Agriculture is Florida’s second most important industry, producing $18 billion in economic value each year. It is the foundation for all other contributing economic segments — such as food wholesaling and retailing — that add another $35 billion to Florida’s economy. It also accounts for more than 500,000 jobs and generates a payroll of $10 billion per year.

Open space: About 402 million acres of the nation’s total land area of 1,893 million acres are in federal ownership. Of the remaining land, almost 90% is devoted to agriculture and forestry. The largest group of private landowners is America’s ranchers, who control 523 million acres of rangeland and pastureland -- 35% of all the non-federal land in the U.S. Second are farmers, who control 375 million acres plus 33 million acres enrolled in the USDA/NRCS’s Conservation Reserve Program -- 27% of non-federal land. Third are timber companies and private woodland owners, who control 399 million acres -- also 27% of non-federal land. Together, these three groups of private landowners control 1,330 million acres -- 70% of the total U.S. land area.

Almost 8 million acres of Florida’s total land area of 35 million acres is in public ownership. Of the remainder, 66% is devoted to agriculture and forestry. The owners of these lands are the major stockholders in the state’s future, since their lands include:

These are the lands that will be needed to sustain our water resources, wildlife, open space and environment. They are the lands needed for future food and fiber production. And they are the lands that will provide the services for our built environment.

Wildlife habitat/habitats for threatened and endangered species: 75 percent of the nation’s threatened and endangered plant and animal species are found on private agriculture and forestry lands. Some endangered plant species in Florida are found only on private agricultural lands.

Agriculture offers many other values to society as well, including:

buffers between natural areas and urban areas

a positive cash flow from ad valorem taxes due to ag’s low demand for services

an economically viable growth management tool that offers an alternative to public land purchases and the current tendency to develop every square foot of land near our rapidly urbanizing population centers, and

traditional rural character; culture and values.

When carried out with environmental compatibility in mind, agriculture also can provide:

presence of wetlands water storage ground water recharge water filtration flood control purification of air carbon sequestering generation of oxygen soil creation, conservation and health decomposition of wastes forests and woodlands ambient healthful living conditions scenic views and viewsheds

Hence, agriculture produces not only our food and fiber and horticultural products, but can accommodate many important resource values as well.

Please see Excerpt #5, "Agricultural Land Values," (downloads) for further discussion of how agriculture is unique as a land use because it has both a commodity value and resource value.

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