Who Is Going To Own Farmland In the Future? By Pork Producer Wanda Scott Patsche

Jun 19, 2023

We recently had a tract of farmland in my county that was sold to a land investment company. The selling price was over $12,000 per acre–outbidding any local farmer. I took a step back and while I have heard of these types of companies, this is the first time they made their presence in my county. So what and who are land ownership companies?

There are approximately 911 million acres in the U.S. 61% are owned by farmers and ranchers. Of the remaining 39%, 10% is owned by corporations, trusts, and other owners. While currently a small percentage now, that number has been growing as farmland becomes an attractive investment.

Click here to see more...

Video: Learning to Wrench From Dad the Hard Way

Harvest is a week out and the farm picked this week to fall apart. The truck needs a battery, the barn curtain's got a problem, and the corn and beans are telling us we're out of time to get it all fixed.

So it's a full day of wrenching. Tork supervises while I get the truck back running, then we're out at the hog barn where one rusted up part has the whole curtain system hung up. Ladder work, cable work, and a little dad-and-son disagreement about the right way to do it. We close it out walking the fields, shelling beans and checking corn, because whether everything's fixed or not, harvest starts when harvest starts.

Chapters: 00:00 Everything breaks the week before harvest 01:00 Tork supervises while I fix the truck 12:30 Out to the barn to find the curtain problem 14:30 One rusty part hung up the whole curtain 20:00 Running the curtain cable from the ladder 24:00 Walking the beans and corn before harvest 26:30 Wrapping up

We're a 6th generation family farm in southeast Iowa showing the real ups and downs of pig farming and row crop farming. No script, just the work. Subscribe and follow along.

JOIN THE BARN TALK NEWSLETTER AND GET LIVE EVENT ACCESS: We're on a mission to hit 10,000 subscribers, and when we do, we're hosting a live event at the barn. Sign up for exclusive access to tickets and details.