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New report highlights ag’s place in the U.S. economy

New report highlights ag’s place in the U.S. economy

Ag is responsible for about $3 trillion in output, Feeding the Economy says

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

A new report is highlighting U.S. agriculture’s influence on the national and local economies.

Thirty industry groups worked together to release the sixth annual Feeding the Economy report.

“It’s an effort to demonstrate to anyone who needs to know what the economic impact of agriculture is,” Dr. Roger Cryan, chief economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, told Farms.com. “It’s a huge part of the economy.”

The report can be viewed at a national, state and congressional district level to give a better understanding of how agriculture fits into communities.

In Iowa, for example, agriculture’s economic impact in the state includes more than 800,000 jobs, almost $52 billion in wages and $6.6 billion in exports.

And in the state’s fourth congressional district, which includes Sioux City, Ames, Mason City and Fort Dodge, ag’s economic impact is 230,640 jobs and $14.9 billion in wages.

Among the report’s national highlights are:

  • Food and ag contributed a total of $3.01 trillion to the U.S. economy in 2021. (For context, India’s total GDP in 2021 was about $2.9 trillion).
  • 7 per cent of the nation’s economy and 29 percent of American jobs (or about 21.5 millioj jobs) are linked to food and agriculture.
  • The food and ag sectors account for about $183 billion in exports.
  • The sectors pay about $819 billion in wages.

Despite these impressive figures, agriculture is taken for granted in the U.S.

People are multiple generations removed from the farm and may not appreciate how farms work or what they provide, Cryan said.

“There’s no denying that everything we do is built around agriculture and there’s no other way to feed people,” he said. “We have lunch dates, movies dates and breakfast in bed, and all of that comes from agriculture.”


Trending Video

Canada's Agriculture Day 2025

Video: Canada's Agriculture Day 2025

Let's celebrate Canadian agriculture.

Well, number one, you don't eat without farmers. Farmers put food on the table. And what could be more important than that?

Well, I think it's important that Canadians understand exactly what takes place, what happens to produce this food, no matter what sector you're talking about.

An awful lot of work goes into that. It's important to understand that meat does not come out of a showcase, and milk does not come out of a bottle. It's produced by farmers and hard work.

Canada has the best farmers in the world. And agriculture is vital to Canada.

In 2024, our agriculture and agri-food sector represented $150 billion of Canada's GDP, nearly $100 billion of our exports, and one in nine jobs.

From grains to fruits to dairy and beef, we are truly blessed with an incredible bounty. Having spent my whole life in agriculture, I see so much potential for the sector.

This time last year, I was proud to open our first-ever agriculture and trade office in the Indo-Pacific, the world’s fastest-growing economy, to cement our presence in the region and grow our exports even more. We've also been making historic investments to help our farmers to boost their yields, protect the planet, and earn a fair living.

The world wants more top-quality, sustainable food, and I know our Canadian farmers can deliver. And it's so important that you do that with pride. We need you.

Quite simply, you eat the most top quality food in the world. You do that because of the quality of farmers and ranchers you have in this country.

Just say thank you to a farmer or a rancher. They work very hard, yes, for a living, but also with a sense of pride in what they produce.

That's what Canada's Agriculture Day is all about.