Farmland Losses are Dangerous

North Carolina is losing farmland at an alarming rate! For the last several years, our state has been a leader in the acreage of farm and forest land lost to development, at the rate of approximately 100,000 acres per year. North Carolina is not alone in this problem as productive farm land is being lost throughout the United States.

What does this mean for agriculture? The answer is simple! Fewer acres means less food production while the population is growing. Less land will lead to higher purchase prices and/or higer rental rates for farmers. Competition will also increase among farmers as they search for available land. Farms will be forced out of business because of increased expenses combined with the inability to obtain adequate acreage to maintain a viable business.

What does this mean for citizens? Food prices will increase, and domestically grown food will become less available. America will become more dependent upon foriegn countries to feed our growing populaition. It is estimated that by 2050, world food production will need to increase by 70% in order to feed people. Advances in agricultural technology will likely increase yields. However, yield increases may not sufficiently provide for food demands because of large farmland losses.

We are short-sighted! Even though agriculture is the largest industry in North Carolina, government leaders continue to see a manufacturing plant sitting on a former farm as better for the tax base. The same applies to housing developments placed where farms once existed. If this trend continues, generations to come will suffer from the short-sighted practices that are now in place. Failure to reverse the trend of farmland loss will lead to a crisis point in the years ahead. Is this the kind of legacy we want to leave for the generations behind us?