Barren County, Kentucky
Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture
1,621 farms230,539 acres in farms$181 million in farm sales
Among US counties with published figures, Barren County ranks tenth for tobacco.
Within Kentucky, no other county with a published figure has more farms, corn for silage, hay and haylage, cattle and calves or beef cows.
Sales by product group
| Product group | Sales | Rank in state |
|---|---|---|
| Poultry and eggs | $45.7 million | 11th of 100 |
| Cattle and calves | $42.3 million | 3rd of 113 |
| Milk from cows | $38.1 million | 1st of 33 |
| Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas | $31.5 million | 33rd of 105 |
| Tobacco | $13.9 million | 3rd of 60 |
| Hay and other crops | $6.7 million | 4th of 115 |
| Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops | $1.3 million | 19th of 76 |
| Vegetables, melons and potatoes | $724,000 | 18th of 98 |
| Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys | $539,000 | 26th of 95 |
| Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk | $302,000 | 6th of 101 |
What the fields held
Barren County harvested 108,317 acres of cropland in 2022, 11th of 116 counties in Kentucky. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 55% of that, soybeans 19%.
| Crop | Acres | Share of US |
|---|---|---|
| Hay and haylage | 59,476 | 0.11% |
| Soybeans | 20,246 | under 0.1% |
| Corn for grain | 16,870 | under 0.1% |
| Corn for silage | 6,021 | 0.10% |
| Tobacco | 4,841 | 2.3% |
| Wheat | 2,083 | under 0.1% |
| Vegetables | 136 | under 0.1% |
| of which potatoes | 2 | under 0.1% |
| Berries | 7 | under 0.1% |
| Orchard land | 4 | under 0.1% |
| of which apples | 2 | under 0.1% |
Withheld to protect individual farms: canola.
How much of the county is farmland
Share of the county land in farms73.9%
Barren County ranks 18th of 120 counties in Kentucky on this measure.
- 125,500 acres of cropland, 54% of farmland
- 78,336 acres of pastureland, 34% of farmland
- 30,547 acres of woodland, 13% of farmland
- 84 acres irrigated
Farm sizes
The typical farm in Barren County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 70 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 142 acres, 78th-largest of 110 in Kentucky. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 41.0% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 1.7% of the total.
Barns, pens and pastures
| Animals | Head | Share of US |
|---|---|---|
| Beef cows | 34,960 | 0.12% |
| Cattle and calves | 80,293 | 0.09% |
| Broilers sold in 2022 | 8,367,761 | 0.09% |
| Milk cows | 6,578 | 0.07% |
| Horses and ponies | 1,377 | 0.06% |
| Goats | 1,197 | under 0.1% |
| Sheep and lambs | 1,314 | under 0.1% |
| Laying hens | 2,881 | under 0.1% |
| Hogs and pigs | 108 | under 0.1% |
Withheld: turkeys.
Who farms here
Decisions on Barren County's 1,621 farms are made by 2,742 producers. Their average age is 57.6, 0.5 years above the Kentucky average. Women are 34.1% of them.
Five years earlier
| Measure | 2017 | Change to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Farms | 1,899 | −14.6% |
| Land in farms, acres | 253,834 | −9.2% |
| Average farm size, acres | 134 | +6.0% |
| Farm products sold (current dollars) | $127 million | +42.6% |
| Tobacco, acres | 4,862 | −0.4% |
| Beef cows, head | 37,087 | −5.7% |
| Hay and haylage, acres | 58,672 | +1.4% |
| Corn for silage, acres | 7,103 | −15.2% |
Nearest rivals
- Tobacco between Person County, NC and Wayne County, NC
- Beef cows between Goshen County, WY and Dawson County, NE
- Hay and haylage between Mercer County, ND and Gregory County, SD
- Corn for silage between Stutsman County, ND and Olmsted County, MN
Counties with a similar sales mix
- Adair County, Kentucky largest group: poultry and eggs; mix match 97%
- McLennan County, Texas largest group: cattle and calves; mix match 94%
- Rockbridge County, Virginia largest group: poultry and eggs; mix match 93%
Barren County accounts for 2.3% of farm sales in Kentucky and 2.3% of the farms in Kentucky. Rank Kentucky counties for tobacco.
Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.