A report released by 25 food and agriculture groups reveals that food and agriculture industries contribute over $8.6 trillion to the U.S. economy. In total, this is nearly one-fifth of the national output, beating pandemic levels in 2019 by 22 percent.
Commissioned annually, the Feeding the Economy report provides data on jobs, wages, and economic outputs through a farm-to-fork analysis.
Simply put, the food and agriculture sector remains resilient and reliable amidst global and domestic crises, including commodity shock amidst the war in Ukraine and continued supply chain disruptions.
“Agriculture is foundational to the U.S. economy, reaching far beyond the farm gate, supporting over 46 million jobs. In manufacturing, more than twice as many Americans are manufacturing agricultural products as cars and trucks,” said Corn Refiners Association President and CEO John Bode.
According to the report, all 50 states displayed an increased economic output in the 2023 report compared to the 2022 report. The largest gains were noticed in Hawaii (31 percent), North Dakota (26 percent), New York (23 percent), Nevada (22 percent), and Florida (21 percent).
Key findings from national data include:
- Total Jobs: 46,283,917 (up 1.5% since the 2019 report)
- Total Wages: $2.61 trillion (up 26.2% since the 2019 report)
- Total Taxes: $947.93 billion (up 3.8% since the 2019 report)
- Exports: $202.2 billion (up 24.4% since the 2019 report)
- Total Food and Ag Industry Economic Impact: $8.6 trillion (up 21.8% since the 2019 report)
The strength and growth highlighted in this year’s report reinforce that agriculture is evolving and innovating to meet the demands of the 21st Century.
Land use for agriculture decreased by 28 percent while land productivity grew nearly four times and labor productivity grew more than 10 times, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In fact, agriculture’s total factor productivity growth rate is among the highest of U.S. sectors.
“Today, in the face of supply chain disruptions and the Ukraine Conflict, we truly need to think about the urgent need to feed people in addition to the important role that agriculture plays in our economy,” said CropLife America President and CEO Chris Novak.
Among the more than two dozen organizations involved with the report were the American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, Corn Refiners Association, The Fertilizer Institute, National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, National Milk Producers Federation, North American Meat Institute, and the U.S. Dairy Export Council.
