The Changing Concentration of U.S. Agricultural Production during the 20th Century: 14th Annual Report to the Congress on the Status of the Family Farm

Fewer farms account for a larger share of farm production. The rate by which agricultural concentration has increased throughout the 20th century has been relatively steady in terms of sales but slowed markedly for acreage around 1950 to less than half its earlier rate. Every State's agriculture has become increasingly concentrated in the hands of fewer farm operators, although the degree of concentration is not uniform. Farms in the western Corn Belt and northern Plains are less dissimilar in terms of acreage and value of output than are farms in the western, east coast, and Sun Belt regions.