Farm Census

Elmore County, Idaho

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

284 farms296,190 acres in farms$592 million in farm sales

Elmore County's potato acreage shrank between 2017 and 2022, the third-steepest decline among the 74 leading potato counties of 2017 with figures in both years.

Its largest product group with a published figure, hay and other crops, makes up 6.5% of farm sales, against 12.7% across Idaho.

Withheld groups: 84.0%Withheld groups84.0%Hay and other crops: 6.5%6.5%Grains and oilseeds: 5.3%5.3%Vegetables and melons: 4.1%4.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Withheld groups: 84.0%Withheld groups84.0%Hay and other crops: 6.5%6.5%Grains and oilseeds: 5.3%5.3%Vegetables and melons: 4.1%4.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Poultry and eggs: under 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: cattle and calves, milk and other animal products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Hay and other crops$38.6 million12th of 41
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$31.1 million17th of 30
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$24.3 million11th of 30
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$173,00018th of 34
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$157,00023rd of 35
Poultry and eggs$77,0009th of 25
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$54,00015th of 20
Hogs and pigs$14,00015th of 23

What the fields held

Elmore County harvested 80,780 acres of cropland in 2022, 20th of 42 counties in Idaho. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 49% of that, wheat 15%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage39,8590.07%
Wheat12,138under 0.1%
Corn for silage8,4730.14%
Corn for grain7,377under 0.1%
Vegetables5,2620.12%
of which potatoes5,2620.49%
Barley2,3500.10%
Sugar beets1,7080.15%
Dry edible beans1,0730.09%

Withheld to protect individual farms: oats, orchard land, apples and berries.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms15.1%

Elmore County ranks 31st of 44 counties in Idaho on this measure.

  • 101,245 acres of cropland, 34% of farmland
  • 188,888 acres of pastureland, 64% of farmland
  • 8,701 acres of woodland, 3% of farmland
  • 78,012 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in Elmore County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 23 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 1,043 acres, eighth-largest of 42 in Idaho. The most common size class is 1–9 acres, with 35.2% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 15.5% of the total.

1–935%10–4924%50–1798%180–49913%500–9994%1,000–1,9994%2,000+12%
Elmore County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Milk cows28,8600.31%
Cattle and calves180,0880.20%
Beef cows11,443under 0.1%
Horses and ponies746under 0.1%
Goats632under 0.1%
Sheep and lambs455under 0.1%
Laying hens1,583under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs29under 0.1%
Turkeys10under 0.1%

Withheld: broilers sold.

Who farms here

Decisions on Elmore County's 284 farms are made by 567 producers. Their average age is 55.8, 0.8 years below the Idaho average. Women are 39.0% of them.

Under 3513%35–4414%45–5418%55–6422%65–7423%75+11%
Elmore County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms340−16.5%
Land in farms, acres358,454−17.4%
Average farm size, acres1,054−1.0%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$430 million+37.6%
Potatoes, acres13,069−59.7%
Milk cows, head27,798+3.8%
Cattle and calves, head169,986+5.9%
Sugar beets, acres9,252−81.5%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Elmore County accounts for 5.4% of farm sales in Idaho and 1.2% of the farms in Idaho. Rank Idaho counties for potatoes.

Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.