Agriculture is Arkansas’ largest industry, with more than $5 billion in farm income generated annually. Add to this the value of agricultural and food processing and related service industries, and the agricultural community accounts for more than 25 percent of the state’s economy. Roughly one-half of the state’s land is devoted to agriculture. Arkansas’ 14.4 million acres of farmland is divided among 44,000 farms. Average size of a farm is 320 acres. Crop farms average 500-plus acres each, while livestock operations average 200-plus acres in size. Arkansas’ climate and topography make it well suited for the production of a broad spectrum of commodities. Crop production is concentrated in the eastern one-third of the state and in the Arkansas and Red River valleys. Livestock operations are spread throughout the remainder of the state with heaviest concentration in the northwestern half.
We always welcome your comments at Farm Bureau, so please e-mail us if you have questions about the information presented here.