USDA RELEASED ITS AGRICULTURAL CENSUS...

USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) released its agricultural census on Thursday. What’d it find? Between 2012 and 2017, the total number of farms fell more than 3 percent, while those that remained increased their average acreage. (That’s consolidation, folks.) Overall, fewer acres were cultivated. So what’s the good news? Women now make up 36 percent of farm operators, and new farmers—those who have been in the business for less than 10 years—are 27 percent of the population. Plus, local food accounts for billions in farm sales. The agency sums it up in a press release.