Cost of Running an Average-Sized Farm in Wisconsin Increased for 3rd Consecutive Year
Monday, August 4th, 2014 -- 10:28 AM
(Wisconsin Ag Connection) -The cost of running an average-sized farm operation in Wisconsin was up for the third consecutive year in 2013. According to the USDA's National Ag Statistics Service, total state farm production expenditures were at a record $11.4 billion last year, up 3.4 percent from 2012.Feed expense represented the largest single production expense for Wisconsin farmers last year at $2.06 billion. That was up 6.2 percent. Farm services, the second largest expense, totaled $1.40 billion. But that category was 4.1 percent less expensive than a year earlier.
Ag economists say the largest category increase in 2013 was found in miscellaneous capital expenses, which doubled during the year; followed by misc. farm machinery at an 18 percent increase. Farm improvements and construction, as well as livestock & related expenses were both 12 percent higher. Other increases were found in feed, chemicals, interest, property taxes, supplies & labor, tractors and self-propelled machinery, seeds & plants, and trucks/autos. But rent, fertilizer, fuels, and labor were all down for the year.
By the numbers, expenditures per Wisconsin farm averaged $163,897 in 2013, compared with $158,453 in 2012. The average operation spent $29,513 on feed, $20,057 on farm services, $12,607 on fertilizer, and $13,467 on labor.
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