Farm Census

Renville County, Minnesota

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

931 farms626,065 acres in farms$810 million in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Renville County ranks seventh for corn for grain and eighth for sales of grains and oilseeds.

Its largest product group with a published figure, grains and oilseeds, makes up 62.8% of farm sales, against 53.6% across Minnesota.

Grains and oilseeds: 62.8%Grains and oilseeds62.8%Hogs and pigs: 14.1%Hogs and pigs14.1%Cattle and calves: 7.1%7.1%Hay and other crops: 5.8%5.8%Poultry and eggs: 4.8%4.8%Vegetables and melons: 3.0%3.0%Milk: 2.1%Milk2.1%Sheep and goats: 0.2%Other animals: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%Grains and oilseeds: 62.8%Grains and oilseeds62.8%Hogs and pigs: 14.1%Hogs and pigs14.1%Cattle and calves: 7.1%7.1%Hay and other crops: 5.8%5.8%Poultry and eggs: 4.8%4.8%Vegetables and melons: 3.0%3.0%Milk: 2.1%2.1%Sheep and goats: 0.2%Other animals: under 0.1%Horses and mules: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: fruit and nuts and nursery and greenhouse crops.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$509 million1st of 83
Hogs and pigs$114 million17th of 69
Cattle and calves$57.4 million8th of 79
Hay and other crops$47.3 million6th of 78
Poultry and eggs$38.6 million12th of 49
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$24.6 million4th of 62
Milk from cows$17.4 million28th of 56
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$1.4 million6th of 63
Other animals and animal products$322,00030th of 58
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$52,00038th of 54

What the fields held

Renville County harvested 571,420 acres of cropland in 2022, third of 87 counties in Minnesota. Corn for grain covered acreage equal to 47% of that, soybeans 39%.

CropAcresShare of US
Corn for grain271,3250.34%
Soybeans221,2150.26%
Sugar beets35,1223.0%
Vegetables25,5450.59%
of which potatoes3under 0.1%
Dry edible beans10,4290.85%
Hay and haylage4,039under 0.1%
Wheat3,050under 0.1%
Corn for silage1,964under 0.1%
Oats5600.06%
Orchard land16under 0.1%
of which grapes16under 0.1%
Barley12under 0.1%

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms99.5%

Renville County ranks fifth of 87 counties in Minnesota on this measure.

  • 598,705 acres of cropland, 96% of farmland
  • 7,087 acres of pastureland, 1% of farmland
  • 5,409 acres of woodland, 1% of farmland
  • 1,935 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Renville County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 240 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 672 acres, 13th-largest of 84 in Minnesota. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 21.7% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 20.2% of the total.

1–94%10–4919%50–17922%180–49920%500–99916%1,000–1,99912%2,000+8%
Renville County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Hogs and pigs253,3950.34%
Turkeys198,6520.20%
Sheep and lambs6,6850.13%
Cattle and calves26,887under 0.1%
Milk cows2,349under 0.1%
Goats425under 0.1%
Beef cows2,677under 0.1%
Horses and ponies189under 0.1%
Laying hens930under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 2022690under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Renville County's 931 farms are made by 1,591 producers. Their average age is 56.4, 0.7 years below the Minnesota average. Women are 27.9% of them.

Under 358%35–4416%45–5415%55–6430%65–7420%75+10%
Renville County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,026−9.3%
Land in farms, acres624,114+0.3%
Average farm size, acres608+10.5%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$609 million+33.0%
Sugar beets, acres45,729−23.2%
Dry edible beans, acres7,819+33.4%
Vegetables, acres25,199+1.4%
Hogs and pigs, head313,786−19.2%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Renville County accounts for 2.8% of farm sales in Minnesota and 1.4% of the farms in Minnesota. Rank Minnesota counties for sugar beets.

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