Minnesota
Minnesota farms are consolidating and other takeaways from the Census of Agriculture – Minnesota Reformer
The number of Minnesota farms is shrinking, and surviving farms are getting bigger and bigger, according to Census of Agriculture data released this week.
The Census of Agriculture is conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture every five years, providing detailed data on the country’s farming and livestock industries.
Until Tuesday, the most recent comprehensive data on farms, agricultural goods and farmers was from 2017. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted supply chains, massive farm subsidy programs took effect and then ended, and inflation drove up the cost of farm inputs and food.
The release contains data collected in 2022, and provides insight into how Minnesota’s agriculture industry changed since 2017. The data is key in shaping government policy, especially the every-five-years federal farm bill, which funds government nutrition and farm programs.
Here are some key takeaways from the data:
Farms are consolidating
The Census of Agriculture data show a pair of key long-term trends are continuing: The number of farmers are shrinking while farms are getting bigger.
The number of Minnesota farms decreased from about 68,800 in 2017 to 65,500 in 2022. Over the same period, the average farm size increased from 371 acres to 388 acres.
The number of farms with 2,000 or more acres increased by about 21%.
By getting bigger, farms achieve economies of scale — fixed costs, like tractors and other equipment, are spread out over more acres of product; simply put, the bigger a farm gets, the higher its profit margins.
Dairies are disappearing
Between 2017 and 2022, the number of dairy farms in Minnesota decreased by 40%, continuing a decades-long decline in the state’s dairy industry.
The Census of Agriculture data includes all farms with dairy cows — so it doesn’t differentiate between a dedicated dairy operation and a crop farmer with a few dairy cattle on the side. Still, the data suggest farmers from both groups are selling off their cattle.
The numbers point to another ongoing trend in agriculture: specialization. Farmers can maximize profits by focusing their labor, equipment and investments on one or two crops; diverse operations, with livestock and various crops, are becoming less and less common.
Farm income hit record highs in 2022; have since dropped
High prices and good yields for the state’s most popular cash crops — corn and soybeans — drove up farm incomes in 2021 and 2022, and those record profits are reflected in the Census of Agriculture data.
Minnesota farms made more than $28 billion in sales in 2022, compared to $18 billion in 2017.
But farm incomes came back down to earth in 2023, decreasing by about 16% nationwide, according to USDA data.
Farm incomes vary widely based on commodities and local weather patterns, so experts warn against making sweeping industry-wide generalizations.
In Minnesota, corn and soybeans alone account for more than half of farm profits. Livestock, especially hogs, comprise 40% of Minnesota’s farm sales.
Farms are receiving more government assistance
Fewer farms received government payments in 2022 than in 2017, but the amount of government money flowing to Minnesota farmers increased.
In 2017, the government paid out $394 million to around 41,000 farms.
In 2022, the government distributed $584 million to around 31,600 farms, including disaster assistance for farmers impacted by severe storms in 2022. That averages out to around $18,500 per farm.
Those government payments include federal subsidies, which pay farmers when crop prices dip below certain levels. With high commodity prices in 2022, these accounted for a smaller portion of government payments than in previous years.
Sugar beets!
One number that held steady was the number of sugar beet farmers in the state — there was only one fewer sugar beet farm in 2022 compared to 2017.
Sugar beets are a remarkably steady and profitable industry for a couple reasons: Farmers collectively own the processing facilities, and sugar prices are supported by protectionist federal policy, boosting profits for sugar beet farmers.
Minnesota produces more sugar beets than any other state.
(Read more about Minnesota’s sugar industry here.)
The former NFL sideline reporter has met with top Republican committees as she weighs a 2026 bid and a rare GOP pickup attempt in Minnesota.
Michele Tafoya, the former NFL sideline reporter turned political analyst, is considering a run for the United States Senate in her current home state of Minnesota, OutKick has learned. Sources familiar with the situation say she is expected to make a final decision in early 2026.
Tafoya met with the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), Senate Leadership Fund, and other stakeholders in Washington, D.C. last week. The NRSC has been recruiting her to run for the Senate race in Minnesota, where the Democratic primary has pitted progressive favorite Peggy Flanagan against Chuck Schumer-backed Angie Craig.
Tafoya gave up her NBC career so she could speak more openly about her conservative political beliefs. The breaking point for Tafoya at the media giant came in December 2021 when she appeared on “The View” and served as the conservative panelist. The rest of the cast on the show supported Colin Kaepernick’s national anthem protest, and his assertion that the NFL resembled the slave trade, while Tafoya raised some important counterpoints.
“I’ve been covering the NFL for 25 years,” Tafoya said at the time. “Nobody forces these guys to play. I thought comparing it to the slave trade was a little rough. These guys enter willingly, they are the most well cared for people. Yes, they play a hard sport. And every one of them — black, white, Latino, whoever’s playing the sport — will tell you how much they love it, and they’re willing to do it, and they make a damn good living.”
Former NFL reporter Michele Tafoya is weighing a Minnesota U.S. Senate bid after meetings with GOP groups, with a final decision expected early next year.
(Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images)
Tafoya nnounced in February 2022 that she wanted to pursue other career opportunities. Shortly after, she became the co-chair for Republican Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Kendall Qualls when he ran against Tim Walz in 2022.
Tafoya’s Rise in Minnesota Politics
Since then, Tafoya has become more active politically, particularly in Minnesota. Tafoya has taken Walz and Rep. Ilhan Omar to task many times over their policies and rhetoric. Most recently, Tafoya has railed against a $1 billion fraud scheme in Minnesota that she linked to Walz and Omar.
Tafoya grew up in California and attended UC Berkeley for her undergraduate degree and USC for her master’s degree. She moved to Minnesota after graduation to pursue a career in sports broadcasting and has lived in the state since.
According to sources familiar with the situation, Tafoya has been receiving calls from supporters in Minnesota encouraging her to run, and she’s had ongoing conversations with South Carolina Sen. and NRSC Chairman, Tim Scott.
Minnesota hasn’t had a Republican senator since Norm Coleman, who left office in January 2009. Should Tafoya choose to run, she’d look to reverse a trend that has continued for over 15 years.
After a frigid weekend, Monday will bring warmer temperatures across Minnesota.
In the Twin Cities, highs will climb into the mid-20s under brighter skies. Temperatures will continue rising on Tuesday, briefly reaching the upper 30s.
A weak system Tuesday night will cool things slightly, but conditions will stay quiet. Wednesday mostly stays mild, but a mix of rain and snow may develop late and continue into Thursday.
Cooler, more seasonable air returns heading into next weekend.
The 26-year-old defenseman finished with three shots in 26:55 of ice time in his first game since being traded to Minnesota by the Vancouver Canucks on Friday for defenseman Zeev Buium, forwards Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren, and a first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
“It’s been a whirlwind for sure,” Hughes said. “I’m just looking forward to kind of getting my feet on the ground and get with the team here and get in a day-to-day lifestyle here. But definitely the last 48 hours have been a lot, but I was excited to go play the game.”
Kirill Kaprizov had two goals and an assist, Hartman had a goal and two assists, and Matt Boldy had a goal and an assist for the Wild (19-9-5), who extended their winning streak to four games and home point streak to 12 games (10-0-2). Filip Gustavsson made 29 saves.
“The crowd was electric I think just from the … I would say warmups to the introduction and then throughout the game,” Minnesota coach John Hynes said. “So, it was great to see the building like that and the guys perform the way that they did. So, it was a great combo.”
Alex Steeves and Andrew Peeke scored, and Swayman made 25 saves for the Bruins (19-14-0), who had won four straight.
“They’re a very good hockey team,” Boston coach Marco Sturm said. “They’re built pretty big, they play the right way, they play pretty hard, and they go to the net really hard, too. So, that’s something I mentioned, even between periods. That’s something we have to learn. And even if teams like that, we have to learn from that, and that shows we’re not there yet, and that’s a good thing, I think.
“Do we like the end results? No, but we had our chances in the first, even in the second period, and those are the chances that you have to use, otherwise it’s going to get hard against a team like that.”
Jared Spurgeon put Minnesota ahead 1-0 at 10:11 of the first period with a wrist shot through traffic as Swayman was screened by Marcus Johansson on a power play.
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