Idaho
Idaho farmland drop – AG INFORMATION NETWORK OF THE WEST
Idaho farmland drop
Idaho lost 2,119 farms, or 8.5 percent of its total farms, between 2017 and 2022, according to the 2022 Census of Agriculture.
Data from the 2022 ag census was released Feb. 13 and it showed there were 22,877 farms and ranches in Idaho during the 2022 census year. That was down from 24,996 farms during the 2017 census year.
The data shows there were 1.9 million farms and ranches in the United States in 2022. That was 7 percent, or 142,000, fewer farms than during 2017.
The Census of Agriculture is conducted every five years and is the only source of uniform, comprehensive and impartial agricultural data. It provides millions of potential data points on U.S. farming, down to the county level.
The 2022 census shows there was 11.55 million acres of total farmland – this includes crop and pasture land – in Idaho during the recent census year. That is a 1.2 percent, or 144,000-acre, drop from the 11.69 million acres of total farmland in the state in 2017.
Nationwide, the amount of total farmland in 2022 was 880 million acres, down 2.2 percent from 900 million acres in 2017.
While presenting highlights of the recent ag census during a livestream event Feb. 13, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said the loss of farms and farmland in the U.S. is concerning to him.
“Survey after survey continues to show a decline in the number of farms and in farmland,” he said. “The amount of farm decline is significant. It’s particularly significant in this survey.”
To put the loss of 20 million acres of U.S. farmland in perspective, Vilsack pointed out that would equal the land mass of every New England state, with the exception of Connecticut.
Idaho Farm Bureau Federation President Bryan Searle, who farms in Shelley, said the loss of farmland is also of concern to Idaho’s agricultural industry and shows why it is important for IFBF and other farm organizations to continue to find ways to try to slow the rate of farmland loss in the state.
According to a University of Idaho study released this year, agriculture is directly and indirectly responsible for 13 percent of Idaho’s total gross state product, one in every 9 jobs and 17 percent of the state’s total economic output.
“It’s heart-wrenching to learn we lost more than 2,000 farms and 144,000 acres of farmland,” he said. “As Idaho Farm Bureau joins other organizations in trying to find a way to slow the loss of the state’s precious farm ground, this latest ag census data serves as sort of a wake-up call on the importance of those efforts.”
The Census of Agriculture was first conducted in 1840 and its data is available for the national, state and county levels, as well as by congressional district, zip code and by watershed.
“For decades, the information provided through the Census of Agriculture has helped us understand American ag,” Chavonda Jacobs-Young, USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, said during the livestream event.
She said the data is critically important in supporting sound policy and decision making.
“Bottom line, we need data to make well-informed decisions,” Jacobs-Young said.
Other national and Idaho highlights of the 2022 Census of Agriculture:
The average size of a farm in Idaho during 2022 was 505 acres, up 8 percent from 468 acres in 2017. Nationally, the average size of farm in 2022 was 463 acres, up from 441 acres in 2017.
Canyon County had the most farms in Idaho in 2022, with 2,311. Twin Falls County ranked second (1,169), followed by Ada County (1,142) and Bingham County (1,081).
When it comes to total value of agricultural production, Cassia County ranked No. 1 among the state’s 44 counties with $1.15 billion in 2022. Twin Falls County ranked second ($1.14 billion), followed by Gooding County ($1.12 billion), Jerome County $944 million) and Canyon County ($829 million).
The average age of an agricultural producer in Idaho was 56.6 in 2022, up slightly from 56.4 percent in 2017. Nationally, the average age of a farmer ticked up from 57.5 in 2017 to 58.1 in 2022.
The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Monday, April 20, 2026.
Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 20.
Winning Powerball numbers from April 20 drawing
09-17-36-47-64, Powerball: 26, Power Play: 3
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 20 drawing
Day: 9-5-5
Night: 1-3-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 20 drawing
Day: 9-3-4-7
Night: 6-9-2-8
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from April 20 drawing
05-07-31-41-43, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 20 drawing
05-12-27-33-45
Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 20 drawing
19-37-40-41-53, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
I remember watching a documentary about Idaho’s wildlands. A narrator said there were probably many parts of the state where no human being has ever set foot. I believe that, but I stay relatively close to the highways. If I were 30 years younger, I would probably enjoy exploring the back country, but today, unless a plane takes me in and out, it’s not happening. I can’t say definitively that there is one spot that I find better than others. We’re surrounded by beautiful terrain, however. One place keeps calling me back.
Like a Scene from a Legendary Movie
When I go over the mountain between Gooding and Fairfield, I take time to stop at the overlook above the Camas Prairie. It reminds me of a scene in Exodus, where the Paul Newman character takes an American woman to look across a flat plain leading to Mount Tabor. He explains that’s the site where Deborah gathered her armies. It makes me feel there is something godly about the Camas Prairie. I keep going back to this spot. Sometimes I take along a folding chair and sit and look at the world below.
Slow Down and See the Work of the Creator
Fairfield may be nothing more than a blip as people speed down Route 20, but it’s their loss. On the other side of the highway is some of the prettiest country in Idaho. It’s going to be a lot less lush this spring, but drought conditions haven’t been nearly as severe in the central highlands. But if I’m granted a few more years by the Almighty, I plan to see the prairie for many more springs.
‘Miserable’: McCall 4th of July Getaway Gets Roasted
What was once a great little summer escape has become a total headache according to the internet
Gallery Credit: Mateo, 103.5 KISS FM
The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Sunday, April 19, 2026.
Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 19.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 9-5-1
Night: 8-0-6
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 2-7-0-3
Night: 4-3-3-3
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 19 drawing
15-28-31-38-45
Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing
32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
-
Atlanta, GA3 minutes agoHavana in Atlanta: 6 Cuban restaurants we keep craving
-
Minneapolis, MN9 minutes ago10 years later, our Prince superfan shares his Prince Pilgrimage
-
Indianapolis, IN15 minutes agoIndianapolis Democrat Andrea Hunley to seek bid for mayor’s job in 2027
-
Pittsburg, PA21 minutes agoKozora: Pittsburgh Steelers 2026 Mock Draft (Final Version)
-
Augusta, GA27 minutes agoGeoff Duncan visits Augusta to campaign on Monday
-
Washington, D.C33 minutes agoUS industry leaders take sport fishing issues to Washington DC – Angling International
-
Cleveland, OH39 minutes agoRabbi Leibel Alevsky, Chabad of Northeast Ohio founder and director, dies at 86
-
Austin, TX45 minutes agoMan charged after driving 100 mph in East Austin, crashing into bus station: affidavit