Farm Census

Iroquois County, Illinois

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

1,544 farms669,168 acres in farms$772 million in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Iroquois County leads the country in sales of grains and oilseeds, ranks second for corn for grain and eighth for soybeans.

Within Illinois, no other county with a published figure has more land in farms, or sells more farm products.

Grains and oilseeds: 80.9%Grains and oilseeds80.9%Withheld groups: 12.3%Withheld groups12.3%Hogs and pigs: 6.4%Hogs and pigs6.4%Hay and other crops: 0.3%Milk: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%Grains and oilseeds: 80.9%Grains and oilseeds80.9%Withheld groups: 12.3%Withheld groups12.3%Hogs and pigs: 6.4%6.4%Hay and other crops: 0.3%Milk: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: vegetables and melons, nursery and greenhouse crops, cattle and calves and poultry and eggs.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$625 million1st of 100
Hogs and pigs$49.6 million16th of 73
Hay and other crops$2.0 million9th of 83
Milk from cows$779,00026th of 30
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$229,00019th of 52
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$125,00025th of 61
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$88,00042nd of 78
Other animals and animal products$65,00031st of 67

What the fields held

Iroquois County harvested 608,342 acres of cropland in 2022, first of 102 counties in Illinois. Corn for grain covered acreage equal to 50% of that, soybeans 48%.

CropAcresShare of US
Corn for grain302,9650.38%
Soybeans294,8790.35%
Hay and haylage5,273under 0.1%
Wheat4,267under 0.1%
Oats168under 0.1%
Vegetables28under 0.1%
of which potatoes1under 0.1%
Berries11under 0.1%
Orchard land7under 0.1%
of which apples2under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: corn for silage, barley and pecans.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms93.6%

Iroquois County ranks fourth of 102 counties in Illinois on this measure.

  • 637,185 acres of cropland, 95% of farmland
  • 8,610 acres of pastureland, 1% of farmland
  • 9,963 acres of woodland, 1% of farmland
  • 4,877 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Iroquois County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 160 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 433 acres, 25th-largest of 101 in Illinois. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 26.1% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 12.6% of the total.

1–98%10–4918%50–17926%180–49922%500–99913%1,000–1,9998%2,000+4%
Iroquois County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Hogs and pigs97,3520.13%
Cattle and calves14,276under 0.1%
Sheep and lambs609under 0.1%
Beef cows2,608under 0.1%
Goats217under 0.1%
Horses and ponies139under 0.1%
Milk cows162under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 20226,452under 0.1%
Turkeys53under 0.1%

Withheld: laying hens.

Who farms here

Decisions on Iroquois County's 1,544 farms are made by 2,581 producers. Their average age is 59.7, 1.1 years above the Illinois average. Women are 26.5% of them.

Under 359%35–4412%45–5413%55–6422%65–7427%75+17%
Iroquois County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,516+1.8%
Land in farms, acres681,289−1.8%
Average farm size, acres449−3.6%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$421 million+83.6%
Corn for grain, acres318,759−5.0%
Soybeans, acres294,361+0.2%
Hogs and pigs, head52,640+84.9%
Oats, acres126+33.3%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Iroquois County accounts for 2.9% of farm sales in Illinois and 2.2% of the farms in Illinois. Rank Illinois counties for corn for grain.

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