U.S. farmers spent far less on agriculture production in 2015 compared to 2014, according to the Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. A new report shows farmers spent $362.8 billion on agricultural production in 2015, down 8.8 percent from 2014, reversing a long-term trend of growing costs. Feed and farm services, the two largest expenditure categories for U.S. farmers in 2014, both declined 8.2 percent last year. Producers spent $58.5 billion on animal feed and $41.6 billion on farm services in 2015. One of only two expenditure categories that increased last year was livestock, poultry and related expenses, on which the producers spent $45.4 billion last year, an increase of 0.7 percent from 2014. The other was miscellaneous capital expenditures at $700 million, an increase of 16.7 percent. Livestock producers spent $182.6 billion, down 6.6 percent from 2014. Crop growers spent $180.3 billion, down 10.9 percent from 2014. Per farm, the average expenditures total was $176,181 compared with $191,500 in 2014, down 8.0 percent.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service.