How Iowa Farmers Make $26.4 Billion A Year From 85300 Farms - American Farming Documentary

hello my friends Iowa is a Midwestern state in the  United States with an area of about 35.8 million   Acres of that up to 31.3 million acres of land  in the state is used for agricultural production   for many years now Iowa has always been one  of the states with the highest agricultural   Revenue in the country second only  to California in 2021 the state's   total agricultural sales is 26.4 billion  dollars less than a half that of California according to USDA statistics as  of mid-2022 there are about 85   000 active farms in Iowa and the average size  of a farm in this state is about 345 Acres   currently operations on farms in Iowa are mainly  corn soybean oat raising pigs cattle and dairy   production in addition agriculture in Iowa is  also known for its large apple and cherry Farms every year tens of thousands of ranches in Iowa   provide full-time and part-time  employment to approximately 801   000 workers and the state's agricultural Workforce  accounts for about 4.5 percent of the population [Music]   we're currently on a pig farm in  Washington County southwest Iowa   it is home to 115 South and each year about 2 000  piglets are born on this farm [Music] at this Farm   hundreds of piglets will be exclusively breastfed  for a month before they are fed of the foods in recent years Iowa has always been  the state with the largest number of   pigs in the country with about 24 million  pigs they are distributed on 5418 Farms   second on this list is Minnesota  with about 8.7 million pigs when the piglets reach five weeks of age  they will be fed the same feet as the sound   and this will be maintained for about a month  before they are separated for fattening [Music]   these are hundreds of three-month-old pigs on a  farm in Hamilton County Eastern Iowa all these   pigs have just been separated from the mother  Pig and will begin to enter the fattening stage currently most Peak farms in Iowa have  a big population ranging from 300 to 5   000 heads large-scale pig farms with a population  of more than five thousand make up only about 20   percent of the state's pig farms at Iowa Hog  Farms pigs are considered eligible for Harvest   once they reach six to seven months of age  and weigh between 150 and 190 pounds [Music]   this is what happens when hundreds of pigs on this  Farm are eligible for the meat Harvest all of them   will be transported by a truck to the Pork Factory  and this will be the last trip for these pigs [Music] according to statistics in 2021 in the United  States there are about 2780 pork production   facilities in operation and each hour 1106  pigs are slaughtered across the country   every year the number of pigs slaughtered across  the country is between 127 and 130 million heads   in addition to Modern pig farms there are  also dozens of free-range pig farms in Iowa   however these are usually small-scale   Peak farms and the number of pigs only  fluctuates in the range of a few dozen goodbye pig farms we will now go to  cattle farms in Iowa to see how the   process of raising millions of cattle happens  unlike the cattle herds in Texas or Nebraska   most cattle in Iowa are raised on factory  farms and rarely graze on large pastures   in recent years most cattle in Iowa have been  purchased from cattle ranchers in other states hundreds of these calves are preparing to be  shipped to cattle ranchers in Iowa [Music] according to USDA statistics as  of June 2022 there are about 19   000 active cattle ranchers in Iowa and the number  of cattle in the state is about 3.85 million heads foreign [Music] this is a cattle  ranch in Ringgold County Southern Iowa   and all of the cattle here are raised  for the purpose of harvesting meat every day the workers on this Farm will  provide food and water for the cattle   instead of herding them to the vast  grasslands basically the meat quality   of cattle raised in Barns will not be as  high as that of cattle grazing on pasture   according to statistics in 2021 the cuddle  industry in Iowa usually brings in about 17   000 jobs and the value that cattle brings to  this state is about 4.1 billion dollars [Music]   this is a cattle ranch in Sioux County south  of Iowa here hundreds of cattle spend most of   their lives living in Barns or concentrated  enclosures they are only herded out into the   pasture about twice a week and this period  does not last more than three hours [Music]   this is what happens when the  cows are eligible for meat   they are shipped to slaughterhouses  and end up here [Music]   in 2021 approximately 895 000 beef cattle  were slaughtered in Iowa and the state's beef   production is approximately 667 million pounds  ranking 12th in the nation for beef production next we will go to the fields of Western Iowa to  see how artichokes are cultivated and harvested June to August is usually a good time to  start the process of growing artichokes   in the fields of Iowa according to USDA  statistics in 2021 there are five active   artichoke farms in Iowa an area of artichoke  cultivation in this state is about 27 Acres   accounting for one percent of the area  planted with this plant in the country currently most artichoke varieties  grown in the united states require   about 160 to 180 days to be eligible for Harvest   this is what happens in the artichoke fields in  Iowa when the harvest season begins dozens of   Myra workers will cut down the artichoke Buds and  deliver them to the site for Packaging thank you according to statistics in 2021 the  production of artichokes in Iowa is about 189   000 pounds meanwhile the production  of artichokes harvested in the state   of California amounted to 87 million pounds  accounting for 96 of the national production at some Farms thousands of artichoke buds  after being harvested we packed right in the   field before being shipped to farmers markets in  addition a large amount of artichokes will also   be sent to factories to be processed into other  products such as beverages or Pharmaceuticals when it comes to Iowa agriculture we  can't help but mention the vast corn   fields because this is considered a symbol  of the agricultural industry in this state   for about 20 years Iowa has always been the  leading state in the country in corn production according to statistics in 2021 up to 13.3 million  Acres of Farmland in Iowa is used to grow corn   and the Harvest in this state is about 2.4 billion  bushels counting for 16 of the national production [Music] not only famous for its vast corn fields   Iowa is always mentioned where we talk about  soybean production in the United States   currently 10 million Acres of Farmland is used  to grow soybeans in the state and the soybean   yield in Iowa is 631 million bushels or 14 of the  national production in recent years agricultural   land in Iowa has always accounted for 85 to 87  percent of the state's area and the state is   second only to Nebraska in the percentage  of land used for agricultural production foreign today we are going to the U.S state  of Louisiana to see how farming and   livestock work here [Music] agriculture is  one of Louisiana's most important industries   ranking in the top three along with petrochemicals  and tourism according to USDA statistics at the   beginning of 2022 there are about 31 000  operating farms in Louisiana with the total   area of about 8.3 million Acres accounting  for 29 of the state's land area [Music]   currently operations on farms in Louisiana  are mainly growing corn sugarcane rice raising   cattle pigs and poultry in addition the state  is also famous for catching some seafood species   such as shrimp oysters and crabs each year the  Louisiana shrimp industry creates approximately 15   000 jobs and contributes 1.4 billion dollars  in state revenue [Music] we are currently on   a pig farm in Southwestern Louisiana  here more than 200 pigs are raised on   a free-range Farm they are free to dig into  the ground and play in a large protected area   it is estimated that there are about 175  pig farms in Louisiana that are raising pigs   this way the number of pigs raised on the free  range in this state is about four thousand every day hundreds of pigs at this  Farm will be herded into the forest   next to the farm to freely feed here  they can eat some grass and nuts   in addition farmers will also bring pellets  to the place to supplement the diet of pigs most of the feed used for pixia is corn soybeans  and a mixture of sweet potato flour therefore   the quality of pork on these Farms is always  much higher than that of Peaks kept in a barn according to statistics in 2021 there are  about 63 000 pig farms of various sizes   operating in the United States of which Iowa  is the state with the largest number of pig   farms in the country with about 5 700 Farms  this translates to about 24 million heads in addition to free-range pig farms  there are also about 680 other pig   farms operating in Louisiana of various sizes in recent years in the United States there have  always been about 2 700 Peak Slaughter facilities   in operation and an average of about 1100 pigs  are slaughtered every hour across the country   it is estimated that around 120 to 130 million  pigs are slaughtered across the country each year   and the average annual pork  production is about 25 million pounds   contributing 57 billion  dollars to the country's GDP this is a free-range Chicken Farm  located west of New Orleans in Louisiana   there are about 350 hens raised here  for the purpose of harvesting eggs   just like the pig farm in the beginning of the  video every morning hundreds of chickens at this   Farm are also released into the pasture to freely  dig for insects and supplement forage foreign   the freedom to forage on a large pasture means  most of the food is derived from nature making   the quality of eggs at these chicken farms highly  appreciate it and they are almost always sold out in addition to foraging on their own  in the pasture the chickens at this   Farm are also supplemented with other  Foods mainly corn and cereals [Music]   even the leftovers from human meals  will be used to feed the chickens foreign [Music] to the Louisiana Agricultural  Center in 2021 there are about 1500 active chicken   farms in the state and only about eight percent  of them are free-range Farms in recent years the   average amount of chickens produced in Louisiana  has fluctuated between 870 and 890 million pounds   and the state's revenue from the chicken  industry is about 780 million dollars annually   according to USDA statistics in 2021 in  the United States there are around 233   000 active chicken farms and only 1.7 percent of  them are free-range chicken farms most chickens   race the United States are raised in factory  farms with absolutely no access to the outdoors foreign livestock Farms we will now go to  the sugarcane fields of Louisiana   to see how the process of cultivating and  harvesting millions of tons of sugarcane happens end of July is usually the time when sugarcane  planting takes place in most fields in Louisiana   according to statistics in 2021  in Louisiana there are about 403   000 Acres of Farmland used to grow  sugar cane and this is the state   with the second largest sugar cane  area in the country after Florida today the majority of Louisiana's sugar cane  Farms are concentrated in the southern part   of Point Coupe County the area of sugarcane  grown in this County accounts from about 22   percent of the cane growing area of the  state most of the sugarcane varieties   currently grown in Louisiana take about  11 to 13 months to be harvested [Music]   July to October every year is the time  when millions of tons of sugarcane   is ready to be harvested in 2021 cane  production in Louisiana is 13.3 million   tons and Cane production in Florida  is about 17.3 million tons foreign [Music] thousands of tons  of sugarcane will be poured   into these wagons before being  transported to the Sugar Factory [Music] this is an exterior view of  a sugar mill in Louisiana currently in Louisiana there are 11 operating  Sugar factories and the annual production in this   state is about 1.5 million tons accounting for  20 percent of the country's cane sugar production in addition to the vast sugarcane  Fields Louisiana's agriculture is   also famous for its rice fields currently  this state ranks third among the states with   the largest rice production in the country  leading the list are Kansas and California according to data reported in 2019 in  Louisiana there are 425 000 Acres of   Farmland used for Rice cultivation and the number  of active rice farms in this state is 823 Farms each year the United States produces  21 billion pounds of rice and about 55   percent of it is consumed domestically with  the remainder exported to 120 other countries   in addition the rice industry generates about 34   billion dollars a year in the United  States and provides about 125 000 jobs [Music]   farewell to the farms on the mainland of  Louisiana we will now go into the waters   to see how the process of catching  millions of shrimp here is done   every day these fishermen will sail into the sea  about 70 miles from the mainland to catch shrimp these are recreational shrimp fishes who use  trolls they're about 16 to 25 feet in length   and are limited to no more than 250  pounds of shrimp per day per boat   although the Nets yield a lot of fish all of these  fish will be used to feed the seagulls the main   aim of these fishermen is shrimp and crab for many  years now Louisiana has always been the state with   the largest shrimp production in the country  with about 110 million pounds caught each year in addition to shrimp crayfish is also a species  that is widely farmed and caught in Louisiana   currently Louisiana is always leading in  the country in terms of crayfish production   an estimated 125 million pounds of  crayfish are harvested here each year   after the crayfish are dumped out of  this trap the fishermen will continue   to bait the Trap and put them under the  water to prepare for the next Harvest [Music] currently in Louisiana there are about 1   000 crayfish fishermen and  about 1 300 crayfish farmers after transporting millions of  crayfish will be placed in these   mesh bags and transported to the processing plant [Music]

Channel: Tony 98 - Discovery

Views: 978,091

Keywords: farming, harvesting, agriculture, harvest, agricultural, farmland, farm, farming documentary, documentary, iowa agriculture, iowa farming, american farm, cultivation, farm life, agriculture technology, modern agricultural technology, #tony98discovery

Id: Uo-4qqDnHrc

Length: 23min 34sec (1414 seconds)

Published: Thu Jan 26 2023