The Economic Importance
of Food and Fiber
A Spotlight on Elbert County, Georgia
Prepared for
Elbert County Cooperative Extension
January, 2010
by:
The Center for Agribusiness
and Economic Development
College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences
The University of Georgia
Total Population
Elbert County
2015 Trend CAED
20,548
20,509
20,494
20,511
2010 Trend CAED
2008 Est.
2000
18,949
18,758
1990
1980
17,262
17,835
1970
1960
18,585
1950
19,618
1940
18,485
1930
15,000
16,000
17,000
18,000
19,000
Primary data sources: U.S. Census Bureau, decennial censuses & estimate;
CAED (Center for Agribusiness & Economic Development).
20,000
21,000
Population Change: 2000-2008
LOSS
Gain < US
Gain < GA but > US
Gain > GA
Elbert Co. = -0.1%
Avg. GA Co. = 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%
Elbert Co. = 65%
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
Elbert County
Residential
38.9%
Ag-PreferentialEnviron-Conserv
29.0%
Heavy
Equipment
0.002%
Timber *
0.4%
Mobile Home
1.1%
Public Utility
3.6%
Motor Vehicle
7.7%
Primary data source:
GA Dept. of Revenue
Commercial
13.7%
Industrial
5.6%
40% Assessment Value of Property
Gross Digest = $639,833,568
Homestead & Property Exemptions = $98,680,662
Net M&O Digest = $541,152,906
Value of exempt property = $65,472,198
* Timber taxed at 100% based on previous year sales
County Property Tax Digest Comparisons: 2008
County
% Resi- % Agri- % Comdential cultural mercial
% Industrial
% Mo%
%
% UtilMotor bile
Timity
Veh Home ber
ELBERT
38.9 29.0 13.7 5.6
3.6
7.7 1.1 0.39
HART
57.6 20.1
6.7
6.3
2.8
5.7 0.8 0.04
LINCOLN
61.0 23.2
4.8
0.4
2.2
6.3 1.2 0.87
MADISON
44.0 34.7
4.6
1.6
5.5
8.1 1.4 0.12
WILKES
25.3 48.6
8.9
3.8
2.9
6.3 1.3 2.74
OGLETHORPE
39.3 44.9
4.2
0.6
2.3
6.9 0.8 0.88
Avg. GA Co.
42.3
12.6
6.9
4.8
7.0
24.6
Primary data source: GA Dept. of Revenue (preliminary 5/15/09—Fulton Co. digest not verified)
1.0 0.72
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%
Livestock &
Aqua-culture
9.0%
Row &
Forage
Crops
14.3%
$0 - $20
$20 - $45
$45 - $80
$80 - $200
$200 - $442
2008 Farm Gate
Value by County
in Millions of Dollars
What We Know
about Elbert County
¾ 2008 Farm Gate Value in Elbert Co.
was $113.1 million. Adding $76
thousand of landscape services
increased the total agricultural
production value to $113.2 million.
¾ The highest value commodity group
was poultry & eggs, representing
86% of the total agricultural
production value.
Elbert County
2008 Agricultural Production Value
2008 Agricultural Production
Forestry
1.3%
LivestockAquaculture
5.6%
Furits-NutsOrn Hort Other
Veges
3.1%
1.1%Landscape
0.1%
services
0.1%
Row-Forage
crops
2.7%
2008 Top Farm Gate Commodities
Hay
1.2%
Timber
Horses
1.3%
1.6%
Greenhouse
2.7%
Beef
3.4%
Layers
13.7%
Hunting
Cotton leases Dairy
0.4%
0.5% 0.4%
Poultry-Eggs
86.1%
Total AG Value = $113.2 million
Rest of
Commodities
2.4%
Broilers
72.4%
Trends in Elbert County:
Number of Farms & Average Farm Size
Number of Farms, Elbert County
Average Farm Size
2500
300
Elbert Co.
Georgia
2000
212
A c re s
200
1500
1000
124
100
507
500
Source: 1945-2007 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
07
02
20
20
97
92
19
19
87
82
19
78
19
19
74
69
19
19
64
59
19
54
19
19
19
1945 1949 1954 1959 1964 1969 1974 1978 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007
19
45
0
49
0
Trends in Elbert County:
Land in Farms, Harvested Cropland
& Farms by Size
Land in Farms & Harvested Cropland
Elbert County
Land in farms
Acres X 1,000
200
Percent of Farms by Size, 2007
50
Elbert Co.
Harvested cropland
Georgia
40
150
30
100
62.9
20
50
10.7
10
07
02
20
97
20
92
19
87
19
82
19
78
19
19
74
69
19
64
19
19
59
54
19
50
19
19
19
45
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
How Do We Compare ?
Georgia, Elbert and Surrounding Counties
Farm Gate Value
$ Per Farm (thousands)
$ Per Acre
$5,000
$4,000
$3,000
$886
$2,000
$1,000
$4,057
$4,034
$1,798
$1,176
$249
$432
$223
$223
$403
$0
Ge
ia
g
r
o
rt
e
El b
rt
a
H
M
is o
d
a
n
lke
i
W
Sources: 2007 Census of Agriculture and 2008 Farm Gate Value Report
s
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?
Elbert County Economy
Agriculture OUTPUT
Agriculture
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Trans-Utilities-Info
Trade
Finance-Ins-RE
Services
Government
Output $
Percent
113,184,147
57,922,246
44,455,846
435,823,149
40,085,109
115,644,548
93,698,859
106,006,312
98,494,204
10.24%
5.24%
4.02%
39.43%
3.63%
10.46%
8.48%
9.59%
8.91%
Total County Economic Output = $1.1 billion
Elbert County Economy
Agriculture + Directly Related Businesses OUTPUT
Output $
Agriculture + Direct
Percent
211,668,435
19.15%
Mining
57,922,246
5.24%
Construction
4.02%
44,455,846
Manufacturing
337,338,861
30.52%
Trans-Utilities-Info
40,085,109
3.63%
Trade
115,644,548
10.46%
Finance-Ins-Real Est
93,698,859
8.48%
Services
106,006,312
9.59%
Government
98,494,204
8.91%
Total County Economic Output = $1.1 billion
Elbert County Employment
Total Jobs = 8,971
AG + Directly
Related
1,093
12.2%
Construction
415
4.6%
Mining
144
1.6%
Manufacturing
1,883
21.0%
Trans-UtilitiesInfo
272
3.0%
State & Federal
Government
769
8.6%
Public
Education
792
8.8%
Trade
1,415
15.8%
Other Services
1,199
13.4%
Professional
Services
740
8.2%
Primary data source: Center for Agribusiness & Economic Development, UGA
Finance-InsReal Est
251
2.8%
An Economic Snapshot
of Elbert County
¾ How much of Elbert County’s total
economic output comes from food and
fiber production?
¾ AG value alone of $113.2 million
consisting of Farm Gate Value and
landscape services comprises 10.2% of
the county’s economy.
¾ AG plus directly related businesses (ex.
Poultry processing, sawmills, etc.)
comprise 19.2% 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%
Elbert Co.
19.2%
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
Elbert County
Agriculture IMPACT
Direct $
Indirect $
113,184,147
0
Mining
0
738
Construction
0
200,342
Manufacturing
0
63,003
Trans-Utilities-Info
0
1,568,650
Trade
0
5,487,155
Finance-Ins-Real Est
0
2,875,125
Services
0
2,154,348
Government
0
1,307,873
Agriculture
113,184,147
13,657,234
Total
Total Impact of Production AG = $126.8 million
11.5% of total economy
Elbert County
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Businesses IMPACT
Direct $
Indirect $
211,668,435
0
Mining
0
901
Construction
0
364,821
Manufacturing
0
120,930
Trans-Utilities-Info
0
3,588,089
Trade
0
10,502,204
Finance-Ins-Real Est
0
6,308,267
Services
0
5,999,329
Government
0
2,759,606
211,668,435
29,644,147
Agriculture + Direct
Total
Total Impact of AG + Directly Related = $241.3 million
21.8% of total economy
Elbert County
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Industries
Employment IMPACT
Direct
Indirect
1,093
0
Mining
0
0
Construction
0
5
Manufacturing
0
1
Trans-Utilities-Info
0
27
Trade
0
112
Finance-Ins-Real Est
0
17
Services
0
106
Agriculture + Direct
0
10
Government
Total Impact of AG + Directly Related Employment = 1,372 Jobs
15.3% of total employment
What These Numbers Mean:
A Brief Explanation
¾ Direct impact is $211.7 million. This
includes food and fiber production,
processing and directly related
manufacturing.
¾ Indirect impact from the Trade sector is
$10.5 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.
Elbert County Food and Fiber
Impact Conclusions
¾ The total impact of food and fiber
production, processing and direct
manufacturing is $241.3 million.
¾ The total county output is $1.1
billion.
¾ Thus, food and fiber (directly and
indirectly) account for 21.8% 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%
Elbert Co.
21.8%
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
#10-04A
January, 2010