1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 SARASOTA COUNTY, FLORIDA Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 315 328 Land in farms ..................acres.. 128 655 151 242 Average size of farm .......acres.. 408 461 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 899 896 878 490 Average per acre .........dollars.. 2 342 1 918 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 27 046 27 957 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 103 107 10 to 49 acres ...................... 119 116 50 to 179 acres ..................... 41 43 180 to 499 acres .................... 23 31 500 to 999 acres .................... 6 8 1,000 acres or more ................. 23 23 Total cropland .................farms.. 189 224 acres.. 18 781 25 290 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 123 138 acres.. 5 323 7 832 Irrigated land .................farms.. 97 103 acres.. 5 008 5 207 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 24 147 18 903 Average per farm .........dollars.. 76 657 57 631 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 17 053 13 026 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 7 094 5 877 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 123 112 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 48 48 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 27 41 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 39 46 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 24 26 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 16 19 $100,000 or more .................... 38 36 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 16 562 16 339 Average per farm .........dollars.. 52 578 49 965 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 117 133 Other ............................... 198 195 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 179 185 200 days or more ................... 140 150 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 167 182 number.. 25 651 29 099 Beef cows ..................farms.. 148 158 number.. 16 157 (D) Milk cows ..................farms.. 14 9 number.. 369 (D) Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 148 155 number.. 12 974 13 666 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 24 23 number.. 309 167 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 17 13 number.. 394 171 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 7 7 number.. 39 60 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 15 17 number.. (D) (D) Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 0 0 number.. 0 0 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 1 4 acres.. (D) (D) bushels.. (D) (D) Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 bushels.. 0 0 Sugarcane for sugar...........farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 tons.. 0 0 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 18 26 acres.. 426 1 610 tons, dry.. 879 4 852 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 10 21 acres.. 1 485 1 266 Land in orchards..............farms.. 42 50 acres.. 2 376 3 281 @1Data are based on a sample of farms. Legend: (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual farms (X) Not applicable (Z) Less than half the unit shown (NA) Not available Source: 1997 Census of Agriculture, Volume 1 Geographic Area Series, "Table 1. County Summary Highlights: 1997." This electronic series presents summary statistics for each county and State together with comparable data from the 1992 census. The items included are the same for all States and counties, except selected crops harvested, which vary by State. Data for 1997 and 1992 are directly comparable for acreage and inventories. Dollar values have not been adjusted for changes in price levels. You can obtain the Volume 1 Geographic Area Series from the National Technical Information Service. If you have any questions concerning the data in this report or need additional information or order forms for agriculture publications, please call the National Agricultural Statistics Service at 1-800-523-3215 or 1-800-727-9540.