The Economic Importance
of Food and Fiber
A Spotlight on Hart County, Georgia
Prepared for:
Hart County Cooperative Extension Service
April, 2005
by:
The Center for Agribusiness and
Economic Development
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
The University of Georgia
Agriculture in Georgia
¾ Georgia's 2003 Farm Gate Value
of agricultural production was
$9.9 billion.
¾ Total food and fiber production
and directly related businesses
account for $29.5 billion of
Georgia's $544 billion economy.
Production Agriculture: 2003
GA Farm Gate
Total Value
$9.9 Billion
Cotton
19.6%
Broilers
10.9%
Rest of
Commodities
38.7%
Watermelon
Timber
2.0%
Container Corn 2.6%
Nursery 2.2%
2.0%
Peanuts
10.4%
Sweet Corn
3.6%
Beef
3.0%
Tomato
5.0%
0 - 20
20 - 45
45 - 80
80 - 125
125 – 258
Farm Gate Value
in $ Millions
What We Know
about Hart County
¾ Agricultural production in Hart
County generated $237.5
million in 2004.
¾ The highest value commodity
group was poultry/eggs,
representing 83.6% of the total
agricultural production value.
Hart County
2004 Agricultural Production Value
2004 Agricultural Production
and Landscape Services
LivestockAquaculture
7.5%
Row-Forage
crops
1.6%
Forestry
0.2%
Vegetables Orn Hort
All Other
4.6%
0.4%
0.4%
Landscape
Svcs.
1.7%
2004 Top Farm Gate Commodities
Breeder Pullet Greenhouse
Container Unit
1.0%
Nursery 1.0%
Pork-Finishing
1.4%
only
Dairy
1.8%
Field Nursery 2.2%
2.2%
Beef cows
2.6%
Layers-eggs
26.5%
Poultry-Eggs
83.6%
Total AG Value = $237.5 million
Beef stockers
0.7%
All others
2.8%
Broilers
57.8%
Trends in Hart County:
Number of Farms & Average Farm Size
Number of Farms, Hart County
Average Farm Size
300
2500
Hart Co.
Georgia
2000
A cres
200
1500
100
1000
500
Source: 1945-2002 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
R
02
20
97
87
92
19
19
19
78
82
19
19
69
74
19
19
59
64
19
19
54
19
19
1945 1949 1954 1959 1964 1969 1974 1978 1982 1987 1992 1997R 2002
19
45
0
49
0
Trends in Hart County:
Land in Farms & Farms by Size
Percent of Farms by Size, 2002
50
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Hart Co.
Georgia
40
30
20
10
9
19 2
97
R
20
02
87
19
82
19
78
19
74
19
69
19
64
19
59
19
54
19
19
19
19
50
0
45
Acres X 1,000
Land in Farms
Hart County
1-9
acres
Source: 1945-2002 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
10-49
acres
50-179
acres
180-499 500-999
acres
acres
1000+
acres
Trends in Hart County
Number of Farms by Commodity
350
1992
1997
2002
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Beef cows
Broilers sold
Source: 1992-2002 (quinquennial) Censuses of Agriculture
Hay
How Do We Compare ?
Georgia, Hart and Surrounding Counties
Farm Gate Value
$ Per Farm (thousands)
$ Per Acre
$3,500
$3,000
$2,500
$3,145
$3,257
$2,000
$2,704
$2,036
$1,500
$930
$918
$1,000
$500
$375
$200
$328
$271
$135
$167
$0
Ge
ia
g
r
o
rt
a
H
Fra
li
nk
n
Ma
on
s
i
d
rt
e
b
El
S
Sources: 2002 Census of Agriculture and 2003 Farm Gate Value Report
n
he
p
te
s
What We Did
¾ The Center for Agribusiness
and Economic Development
performed an analysis of each
county’s economy, focusing
on the role of
food and fiber.
What We Asked
County Economy Modeled
¾ How much of a 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?
Hart County Economy
Production Agriculture-OUTPUT
Agriculture
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Trans/Public Util
Trade
Fin/Ins/Real Est
Services
Government
Total
Output in $ Millions
Percent
237.476
7.336
53.706
576.992
74.543
50.487
31.741
146.680
88.917
18.7
0.6
4.2
45.5
5.9
4.0
2.5
11.6
7.0
$1.268 billion
--
Hart County Economy
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Businesses
Agriculture + Direct
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Trans/Public Util
Trade
Finance/Ins/RE
Services
Government
Total
Output in $ Millions
Percent
240.932
7.336
53.706
573.536
74.543
50.487
31.741
146.680
88.917
19.0
0.6
4.2
45.2
5.9
4.0
2.5
11.6
7.0
$1.268 billion
--
An Economic Snapshot
of Hart County
¾ How much of Hart County’s total
economic output comes from food and
fiber production?
¾ AG value alone of $237.5 million
consisting of Farm Gate Value and
landscaping services comprises 18.7% of
the county’s economy.
¾ AG plus directly related businesses (ex.
animal food mfg., farm mach. mfg., etc.)
comprise 19% of the county’s economy.
Food and Fiber Production, Processing and Direct
Manufacturing as % of Total Output
0 - 10%
10 - 20%
20 - 40%
40 - 60%
60 - 84%
Hart Co.
19%
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
Hart County
Production Agriculture IMPACT
Agriculture
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Utilities
Trade
Fin/Ins/Real Est
Services
Government
Total
Direct $ (millions)
Indirect $ (millions)
237.476
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
18.875
0.017
0.616
2.743
6.393
4.634
3.587
10.308
4.408
$269.5 million – 21.3% of total economy
Hart County
Agriculture and Directly Related Businesses IMPACT
Direct $ (millions)
Agriculture + Direct
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Utilities
Trade
Fin / Ins / Real Est
Services
Government
Total
Indirect $ (millions)
240.932
18.884
0
0.029
0
0.626
0
2.902
0
6.487
0
4.735
0
3.632
0
10.498
0
4.455
$293.2 million – 23.1% of total economy
Hart County
Production Agriculture + Directly Related Industries
Employment IMPACT
Agriculture + Direct
Mining
Construction
Manufacturing
Utilities
Trade
Fin/Ins/Real Est
Services
Government
Total Employment
Direct
Indirect
1,673
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
220
0
11
15
31
100
50
216
6
2,322
What These Numbers Mean:
A Brief Explanation
¾ Direct impact is $240.9 million. This
includes food and fiber production,
processing and directly-related
manufacturing.
¾ Indirect impact from the Trade sector is
$4.7 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.
Hart County Food and Fiber
Impact Conclusions
¾ The total impact of food and fiber
production, processing and direct
manufacturing is $293.2 million.
¾ The total output is $1.268 billion.
¾ Thus, food and fiber (directly and
indirectly) account for 23.1% of the
total output.
Food and Fiber Production, Processing and Direct
Manufacturing Impact as % of Total Output
0
10
20
40
60
-
10%
20%
40%
60%
100%
Hart Co.
23.1%
Contact Information
Prepared by:
Sue Boatright and Dave Waters
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
#05-08A
April, 2005