The Economic Importance
of Food and Fiber
A Spotlight on Greene County, Georgia
Prepared for
Greene County Cooperative Extension
May, 2009
by:
The Center for Agribusiness
and Economic Development
College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences
The University of Georgia
Total Population
Greene County
16,760
15,962
15,635
14,406
2015 Trend CAED
2010 Trend CAED
2008 Est.
2000
11,793
11,391
10,212
11,193
12,843
13,709
12,616
1990
1980
1970
1960
1950
1940
1930
0
3,000
6,000
9,000
12,000
15,000
Primary data sources: U.S. Census Bureau, decennial censuses & estimate; CAED Trend (Center for
Agribusiness & Economic Development).
18,000
Population Change: 2000-2008
LOSS
Gain < US
Gain < GA but > US
Gain > GA
Greene Co.
= 8.5%
Avg. GA County
= 11.2%
GA = 18.3%
US = 8.0%
Primary data source: U.S. Census Bureau (3/09)
% of Land in Cropland & Timberland
14 - 64%
64 - 75%
75 - 83%
83 - 92%
92 - 99%
Greene Co. = 90%
GA Avg. Co. = 76%
GA Total = 78%
GA Metro = 68%
GA Nonmetro = 83%
Primary data sources:
U.S. Census of Agriculture, 2007
USDA Forest Service, 2007
Graphic by Center for Agribusiness
& Economic Development, UGA
Components of 2008 Property Tax Gross Digest
Greene County
Timber *
0.3%
Heavy
Equipment
0.01%
Residential
69.3%
Mobile Home
0.2%
Motor Vehicle
2.7%
Public Utility
1.4%
Industrial
2.4%
Commercial
8.0%
Ag-PreferentialEnviron-Conserv
15.7%
Primary data source:
GA Dept. of Revenue
40% Assessment Value of Property
Gross Digest = $1,916,984,781
Homestead & Property Exemptions = $165,687,963
Net M&O Digest = $1,751,296,818
Value of exempt property = $89,140,582
* Timber taxed at 100% based on previous year sales
County Property Tax Digest Comparisons: 2008
County
%
% In% Agri- % ComResiduscultural mercial
dential
trial
% Mo%
%
% UtilMotor bile
Timity
Veh Home ber
GREENE
69.3 15.7
8.0
2.4
1.4
2.7
0.2 0.31
HANCOCK
45.2 29.7
2.9
2.2
10.8 3.7
2.8 2.58
MORGAN
32.5 46.2
10.9
4.3
1.5
4.0
0.4 0.18
OCONEE
57.2 22.9
11.8
1.2
1.4
5.4
0.1 0.03
OGLETHORPE
39.3 44.9
4.2
0.6
2.3
6.9
0.8 0.88
PUTNAM
68.9
8.8
7.8
2.7
7.5
3.7
0.3 0.20
TALIAFERRO
11.1 69.5
10.1
0.9
2.7
3.1
0.6 2.10
Avg. GA Co.
42.3 24.6
12.6
6.9
4.8
7.0
1.0 0.72
Primary data source: GA Dept. of Revenue
Revenue : Expenditure Ratios
$ of Revenue for Each $ of Expenditure
$1.92
$2.86
Farm/Forest
$1.01
$1.18
$2.70
$3.19
$1.17
Commercial
$1.93
$1.25
$3.45
Residential
$0.00
Cherokee
Jones
Carroll
Oconee
US Avg
$0.64
$0.87
$0.83
$0.90
$0.87
$1.00
$2.00
$3.00
Dorfman, Jeffery, The Economics of Growth, Sprawl and Land Use Decisions (presentation), Dept. of Ag &
Applied Economics, UGA, January 2004.
$4.00
Agriculture in Georgia
¾ Georgia's 2008 Farm Gate Value was
$11.9 billion. Adding the value of
landscape services increased the total
agricultural production value to $14
billion.
¾ Total food and fiber production and
directly related businesses account for
a $63 billion output impact on
Georgia's $771 billion economy.
Production Agriculture: 2008
Georgia Total
Agricultural
Production Value
$11.9 Billion
Landscape
services
15.4%
Poultry &
Eggs
40.1%
Fruits &
Nuts
1.9%
Forestry &
Products
4.1%
Other
Income
4.4%
Ornamental
Horticulture
4.9%
Vegetables
6.0%
Row &
Forage
Crops
Livestock &
14.3%
Aquaculture
9.0%
$0 - $20
$20 - $45
$45 - $80
$80 - $200
$200 - $442
2008 Farm Gate
Value by County
in Millions of Dollars
What We Know
about Greene County
¾ 2008 Farm Gate Value in Greene Co.
was $74.1 million. Adding $5.2
million of landscape services
increased the total agricultural
production value to $79.3 million.
¾ The highest value commodity group
was ornamental horticulture,
representing 29.6% of the total
agricultural production value.
Greene County
2008 Agricultural Production Value
2008 Agricultural Production
Fruits-NutsVeges
0.05%
2008 Top Farm Gate Commodities
Other Landscape
0.69% services
6.6%
Poultry-Eggs
25.2%
Orn Hort
29.6%
Rest of
commodities
Field Nursery
21.5%
0.4%
Broilers
27.0%
Container
Nursery
0.9%
Horses
1.7%
Forestry
7.5%
LivestockAquaculture
25.3%
Row-Forage
crops
5.1%
Beef
3.7%
Hay
5.0%
Dairy
11.5%
Timber Quail
8.1% 10.1%
Total AG Value = $79.3 million
Greenhouse
10.2%
Trends in Greene County:
Number of Farms & Average Farm Size
Number of Farms, Greene County
Average Farm Size
400
1600
Greene Co.
Georgia
1400
300
1200
Acres
1000
800
600
247
200
200
100
Source: 1945-2007 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
07
02
20
20
97
92
19
87
19
19
82
78
19
19
74
69
19
64
19
19
59
54
19
19
1945 1949 1954 1959 1964 1969 1974 1978 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007
19
45
0
49
0
19
400
224
212
Trends in Greene County:
Land in Farms, Harvested Cropland
& Farms by Size
Land in Farms & Harvested Cropland
Greene County
Acres X 1,000
200
Land in farms
Percent of Farms by Size, 2007
40
Greene Co.
Harvested cropland
Georgia
30
150
20
100
50
55.3
10
9.8
19
45
19
50
19
54
19
59
19
64
19
69
19
74
19
78
19
82
19
87
19
92
19
97
20
02
20
07
0
0
1-9
acres
Source: 1945-2007 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
10-49
acres
50-179
acres
180-499 500-999
acres
acres
1000+
acres
Trends in Greene County
Number of Farms by Commodity
2002
2007
180
160
140
153
120
100
112
80
77
60
40
20
11
0
Cattle/calves
inv.
Layers inv.
6
15
Broilers sold
Source: 2002-2007 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
Hay
Horses/ponies Floriculture
crops
How Do We Compare?
Georgia, Greene and Surrounding Counties
Farm Gate Value
$ Per Farm (thousands)
$ Per Acre
$3,000
$2,500
$1,500
$1,000
$500
$2,544
$2,413 $2,512
$2,000
$1,481
$1,176 $1,339
$249
$300
$375
$83
$208
$280
$0
$456
$447
ia
ck
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an
ee
ne
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r
am
o
g
n
e
r
o
c
r
n
e
o
o
t
n
th
Gr
Mo
Oc
e
Ge
Pu
l
Ha
g
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Sources: 2007 Census of Agriculture and 2008 Farm Gate Value Report
What We Did
County Economy Modeled
¾ The Center for Agribusiness and Economic
Development performed an analysis of the
county’s economy, focusing on the role of
food and fiber.
¾ How much of the county’s total current
economic output comes from food and fiber
production and directly related processing?
(A Snapshot of the Economy)
¾ What is the total (direct and indirect)
Impact of food and fiber production and
directly related industries?
Greene County Economy
Agriculture OUTPUT
Output in $ Millions
Agriculture
Percent
9.3
79.329
Mining
7.435
0.9
Construction
18.8
159.927
Manufacturing
208.443
24.6
Trans-Utilities-Info
2.5
21.500
Trade
7.2
61.259
Finance-Ins-RE
112.480
13.2
Services
152.958
18.0
Government
45.639
5.4
Total County Economic Output = $849 million
Greene County Economy
Agriculture + Directly Related Businesses OUTPUT
Output in $ Millions
Agriculture + Direct
Percent
126.388
14.9
Mining
7.435
0.9
Construction
18.8
159.927
Manufacturing
161.384
19.0
Trans-Utilities-Info
21.500
2.5
Trade
61.259
7.2
Finance-Ins-Real Est
112.480
13.2
Services
152.958
18.0
Government
45.639
5.4
Total County Economic Output = $849 million
Greene County Employment
Total Jobs = 7,276
AG + Directly
Related
954
13.1%
Mining
34
0.5%
Construction
1,259
17.3%
Manufacturing
588
8.1%
Trans-UtilitiesInfo
193
2.7%
State & Federal
Government
441
6.1%
Public
Education
408
5.6%
Trade
913
12.5%
Other Services
1,232
16.9%
Professional
Services
906
12.5%
Primary data source: Center for Agribusiness & Economic Development, UGA
Finance-InsReal Est
349
4.8%
An Economic Snapshot
of Greene County
¾ How much of Greene County’s total
economic output comes from food and
fiber production?
¾ AG value alone of $79.3 million
consisting of Farm Gate Value and
landscape services comprises 9.3% of
the county’s economy.
¾ AG plus directly related businesses (ex.
logging, sawmills, etc.) comprise 14.9%
of the county’s economy.
Food and Fiber Production and Directly
Related Manufacturing as % of Total Output
0 - 10%
10 - 20%
20 - 30%
30 - 50%
50 – 77%
Greene Co.
14.9%
What is the Impact?
¾What is the total (direct and indirect)
impact of food and fiber production and
directly related industries?
¾This scenario illustrates how other
industries are affected by the presence
of food and fiber in the county. The
indirect impacts measure output
created due to food and fiber
production and processing in the
county.
What Impact Means:
A Brief Explanation
¾ The impact numbers capture the
ripple effects that food and fiber
create in the county’s economy.
Many other sectors rely in part on the
existence of food and fiber for sales.
Labor
Seed
Utilities
Greene County
Agriculture IMPACT
Direct $ Millions
Indirect $ Millions
79.329
0
Mining
0
0.038
Construction
0
0.549
Manufacturing
0
0.465
Trans-Utilities-Info
0
1.069
Trade
0
1.796
Finance-Ins-Real Est
0
5.118
Services
0
5.427
Government
0
0.293
Agriculture
79.329
14.754
Total
Total Impact of Production AG = $94.1 million
11.1% of total economy
Greene County
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Businesses IMPACT
Agriculture + Direct
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Trans-Utilities-Info
Trade
Finance-Ins-Real Est
Services
Government
Total
Direct $ Millions
Indirect $ Millions
126.388
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
126.388
0
0.057
0.768
0.704
1.795
2.766
6.599
7.342
0.411
20.441
Total Impact of AG + Directly Related = $146.8 million
17.3% of total economy
Greene County
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Industries
Employment IMPACT
Direct
Indirect
954
0
Agriculture + Direct
0
0
Mining
0
8
Construction
0
3
Manufacturing
0
12
Trans-Utilities-Info
0
36
Trade
0
21
Finance-Ins-Real Est
0
108
Services
0
3
Government
Total Impact of AG + Directly Related Employment = 1,143 Jobs
15.7% of total employment
What These Numbers Mean:
A Brief Explanation
¾ Direct impact is $126.4 million. This
includes food and fiber production,
processing and directly related
manufacturing.
¾ Indirect impact from the Trade sector is
$2.8 million. This captures the effects of
farmers (direct source) buying supplies
(seed, fertilizer, work boots) from local
stores. These stores must increase their
output to meet farmer demand.
What These Numbers Mean:
A Brief Explanation (continued)
¾ As local stores increase their output, they
may demand more stock from local
wholesalers (also in the Trade sector).
Local wholesalers demand more from
local manufacturers, thus increasing
activity in the Manufacturing sector.
¾ Local stores also hire employees to assist
farmers. They take home wages and buy
groceries at the local store which
increases demand there.
Greene County Food and Fiber
Impact Conclusions
¾ The total impact of food and fiber
production, processing and direct
manufacturing is $146.8 million.
¾ The total county output is $849
million.
¾ Thus, food and fiber (directly and
indirectly) account for 17.3% of the
total county output.
Food and Fiber Production and Directly Related
Manufacturing IMPACT as % of Total Output
0 - 10%
10 - 25%
25 - 40%
40 - 60%
60 - 84%
Greene Co.
17.3%
Contact Information
Prepared by:
Sue Boatright and Sharon Kane
Center for Agribusiness & Economic Development
“Adding Value to Georgia's Agricultural Economy
Through Research and Extension“
To learn more about your county, go to:
http://www.caed.uga.edu/
...click on “Georgia Statistics System”
Special County Area Report
#09-13A
May, 2009