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27 <br /> Slide #5 <br /> Economics of Agriculture <br /> Challenges <br /> Average net income of <br /> Orange County farmer in 2022: <br /> -$2,213' <br /> —40% of farms had <br /> <$2,500 in sales' Farming main source <br /> of income for only <br /> 30% of farmers" <br /> 'U50.12N3 Us Oep--I of ng.O—.Na nW 1.glcvM SbN N23.aIC—a,.agrlcutMd 00,1ln.�¢bble• <br /> nuwarww»:: b,gaIS.'.'•.. <br /> W,County 1 Cove, 3023 <br /> 'Ua�ga GounN FpRgrlLanri p23 <br /> Commissioner McKee said that the information shared in slide #5 is what leads to loss of <br /> farms and farmland. <br /> Chair Bedford said she did not understand how they can be called a farm and have less <br /> than $2,500 in sales. <br /> Jane Saiers said it varies. She said that there are farms of all sizes and shapes. She said <br /> that it is not always about commodity farms. She said that most farmers have second incomes. <br /> Chair Bedford asked if these farms are also considered wedding venues. <br /> Jane Saiers said these are USDA census data and wedding venues could be included as <br /> agritourism. <br /> Mike Ortosky, an Extension Agent with Cooperative Extension, said that present use <br /> valuation and then responses by the farmers to any USDA question gets included in this. <br /> Commissioner McKee said "farm" and "farmer" is a nebulous term. He said that a person <br /> raising an acre of strawberries is a farmer and so is someone farming 200 acres of soybeans. He <br /> said it all depends on how the definition is used. He said it cannot be defined by size or income. <br /> He said that some small farms do extremely well. <br /> Chair Bedford said a timber farm might not have sales except every 10 years. <br /> Mike Ortosky said they have a full-time farmer, and they will grow $4,000 on two acres. <br /> He said this is a fulltime job but there are not that many examples. He said it is a way of life, not <br /> just a job. <br />