Agricultural Lands - Introduction
Contents
- Introduction to Agriculture in Washington State
- Farm History
- Washington's Agriculture
- Why Preserve Farmland?
- Issues Facing Farms in Washington
Introduction to Agriculture in Washington State
The focus of this page is on the preservation and protection of agricultural lands, including information on agriculture's contribution to the state's economy, agriculture as economic development, and techniques for farmlands preservation and sustainable agriculture. An emphasis is on techniques for preserving farmland, including innovative zoning, transfer of development rights, right-to-farm programs, agricultural conservation easements, current use taxation, and others. This page does not address the regulation of agricultural activities, such as produce, livestock, and other technical details about farm operations.
Farm History
America has been an agrarian nation from its outset, and farming has been a way of life for many people. More recently, the country has become a nation of metropolitan areas, with the majority of the population living in suburbs and cities. One hundred years ago one-third of the U.S. population lived on a farm and nearly 50% of the population worked on farms compared to only 2.6% of the labor force in 1990 (National Agricultural Statistics Service). The number of farms has decreased from about 7 million in the 1930s to less than 2 million today. Less than one-third of the farms today have commercial sales of $40,000 or more. Today's trends include consolidation into large agri-business operations as well as an increasing number of small hobby farms that generate sales of less than $10,000 a year.
Why Preserve Farmland?
Washington's Agriculture
In 2001, the value of Washington's food and agricultural (or farmgate) production (including food processing) was $5.6 billion and ranked 12th in the nation. The value of crops at $3.2 billion placed the state in the 8th ranked position. Livestock and specialty products totaled $1.5 billion and ranked 23rd. Taken as a whole, agricultural production, processing, and marketing account for approximately $29 billion of the state's total economy, or about 20 percent of the gross state product (From Washington Agricultural Statistics Service). The picture is quite different when the farm production sector is considered separately, and the farm production sector's share of gross state product fell from more than 2.4 percent in 1977 to 1.6 percent in 1997 (From Washington State Employment Security Department ). In recent years, apples have overtaken wheat and dairy products as the state's leading commodity. Nearly half of the nation's apple crop is produced in Washington.
Washington's agricultural industry is very diverse in terms of the variety of crops, and is very different in eastern and western Washington. The majority of agricultural jobs are on the east side, which has larger farms, and the primary crops include small grains such as wheat and barley, potatoes, fruit, and vegetables. In the west, farms tend to be small, and dairy products, poultry, and berries are the primary products, and there are more jobs in food processing. The growing and processing of food is the primary industry in most rural communities in Washington.
In the past, Washington's agricultural industry has enjoyed several natural advantages, including a good climate for growing crops and productive farmlands. Washington farmers have grown a diverse array of crops, reflecting the different climates and soils in eastern and western Washington. Traditionally, Washington State has enjoyed low energy and water costs, although this is changing. The state's location relatively close to Asian markets has also been an advantage. With increasing competition from Asian markets, this location is less of an asset than in the past.
Even relative to the dramatic nationwide changes to farming in the last century, the agriculture industry in Washington faces difficult times. As in other states, Washington is losing farmland at a disturbing pace. Each year Washington loses about 23,720 acres of farm and ranchland to urban development (USDA National Resource Inventory, 1997). Washington had about 15.2 million acres of farms in 1997 compared to about 16.5 million acres in 1982 and 18 million acres in 1950 (Census of Agriculture). As agricultural production consolidates into larger farms, the number of commercial farms in Washington has decreased to 29,000 commercial, a decrease of about 20% over the last 15 years (36,000 in 1982). It has become been increasingly difficult for small farmers to stay in business, and the average size of a Washington farm has increased from 456 acres in 1982 to 523 in 1997.
New types of crops: A number of rural communities in Washington have profited by recognizing the potential for nontraditional specialty crops. The market for very fresh foods, organically-grown and/or low-calorie, high nutrition produce is expanding. This more intensive form of farming can be workable on acreages as small as 20 acres. Some operations can be supported on 10 acres if the operator has a second source of income. Berry farms, nurseries, flower bulbs, floral greenery or tree farms, and specialty lettuce farms have done well in counties with large urban centers such as King and Snohomish. Vineyards have also flourished in some areas of the state that would not support more traditional crops.
Issues Facing Farms in Washington
As in other states, the pressure to convert farmland to urban and suburban uses is substantial because farmland is usually relatively easy to develop, and it is difficult to make a living from a small farm. Farmers in Washington State face the following:
- Loss of traditional advantages like adequate water, low electricity rates, efficient transportation system.
- Increasing competition for water, related to the protection of endangered salmon, demand related to new development for limited water rights, and increasing costs associated with environmental regulations such as the Shoreline Management Act, Endangered Species Act, and others.
- Substantial transportation costs due to distance from U.S. markets and increased congestion.
- Lack of available low-cost labor.
- Consolidation of agricultural production into larger farms.
- Increasing competition, particularly from Asian producers. China has supplanted Washington State as the world's largest apple producer.