1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 ERIE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 1 123 1 165 Land in farms ..................acres.. 167 634 167 863 Average size of farm .......acres.. 149 144 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 290 328 231 289 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 892 1 586 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 62 613 50 641 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 85 96 10 to 49 acres ...................... 271 267 50 to 179 acres ..................... 480 502 180 to 499 acres .................... 240 249 500 to 999 acres .................... 34 44 1,000 acres or more ................. 13 7 Total cropland .................farms.. 1 072 1 120 acres.. 113 754 112 806 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 1 007 1 068 acres.. 87 740 79 966 Irrigated land .................farms.. 77 57 acres.. 1 318 709 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 68 914 64 948 Average per farm .........dollars.. 61 366 55 749 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 43 677 35 398 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 25 238 29 550 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 291 277 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 130 141 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 129 125 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 142 148 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 120 140 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 149 164 $100,000 or more .................... 162 170 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 48 731 48 875 Average per farm .........dollars.. 43 394 41 917 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 627 679 Other ............................... 496 486 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 562 559 200 days or more ................... 399 388 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 489 573 number.. 25 212 27 082 Beef cows ..................farms.. 245 253 number.. 2 749 2 622 Milk cows ..................farms.. 201 284 number.. 10 212 12 566 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 452 527 number.. 14 814 14 301 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 38 50 number.. 934 1 481 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 25 36 number.. 2 426 2 382 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 21 19 number.. 594 219 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 44 38 number.. (D) (D) Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 0 2 number.. 0 (D) Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 267 299 acres.. 16 598 14 644 bushels.. 1 662 222 1 442 784 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 218 276 acres.. 7 975 7 389 tons, green.. 104 829 101 182 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 24 32 acres.. 2 044 1 767 bushels.. 98 505 79 609 Oats for grain................farms.. 174 250 acres.. 4 079 5 701 bushels.. 232 935 392 109 Potatoes, excl. sweetpotatoes.farms.. 27 30 acres.. 2 781 3 069 cwt.. 672 819 689 370 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 579 644 acres.. 35 067 33 637 tons, dry.. 76 377 78 028 Land in orchards..............farms.. 303 314 acres.. 13 566 12 285 @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.