How Economic Conditions Changed the Number of U.S. Farms, 1960-88: A Replication and Extension of Gale (1990) to Midsize Farms in the U.S. and Abroad

We replicate and extend the analysis of Gale (1990) to find that economic factors like population pressure, financial stress, and infrastructure play an important role in explaining the growth rate in the number of farms by farm size. We do not find support for the disappearing middle hypothesis, despite a declining trend in the number of midsize farms in the U.S. over time. Economic factors are also important to explain the increase in small and midsize farm numbers in Brazil, and the decreasing small farm numbers in the Eurozone, showing opposite trends in farm numbers globally.