Farm Census

Dunklin County, Missouri

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

291 farms302,199 acres in farms$293 million in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Dunklin County leads the country in cotton.

Crops make up the fourth-largest share of farm sales among the 1,923 counties that sold at least $50 million of farm products.

Cotton: 42.6%Cotton42.6%Grains and oilseeds: 41.0%Grains and oilseeds41.0%Vegetables and melons: 12.3%12.3%Withheld groups: 4.0%Withheld groups4.0%Cattle and calves: 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Cotton: 42.6%Cotton42.6%Grains and oilseeds: 41.0%Grains and oilseeds41.0%Vegetables and melons: 12.3%12.3%Withheld groups: 4.0%4.0%Cattle and calves: 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: fruit and nuts, nursery and greenhouse crops, hay and other crops, poultry and eggs, horses and mules, aquaculture products and other animal products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Cotton and cottonseed$125 million1st of 4
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$120 million15th of 104
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$36.1 million1st of 74
Cattle and calves$320,000102nd of 103
Hogs and pigs$8,00068th of 74
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$4,00095th of 95

What the fields held

Dunklin County harvested 289,748 acres of cropland in 2022, fourth of 114 counties in Missouri. Cotton covered acreage equal to 43% of that, soybeans 33%.

CropAcresShare of US
Cotton125,4201.6%
Soybeans94,6050.11%
Corn for grain24,767under 0.1%
Rice21,4200.94%
Wheat14,144under 0.1%
Vegetables8,6650.20%
Peanuts8,3170.58%
Hay and haylage1,151under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: potatoes, orchard land, apples and pecans.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms87.3%

Dunklin County ranks tenth of 114 counties in Missouri on this measure.

  • 296,902 acres of cropland, 98% of farmland
  • 2,668 acres of pastureland, 1% of farmland
  • 2,459 acres of woodland, 1% of farmland
  • 185,916 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Dunklin County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 172 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 1,038 acres, fourth-largest of 114 in Missouri. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 26.8% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 34.4% of the total.

1–95%10–4918%50–17927%180–49910%500–9995%1,000–1,99915%2,000+20%
Dunklin County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Goats348under 0.1%
Beef cows711under 0.1%
Horses and ponies54under 0.1%
Cattle and calves1,294under 0.1%
Laying hens171under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs26under 0.1%

Withheld: sheep and lambs.

Who farms here

Decisions on Dunklin County's 291 farms are made by 507 producers. Their average age is 59.9, 2.0 years above the Missouri average. Women are 32.0% of them.

Under 355%35–4412%45–5414%55–6432%65–7421%75+17%
Dunklin County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms283+2.8%
Land in farms, acres282,863+6.8%
Average farm size, acres1,000+3.8%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$197 million+49.1%
Cotton, acres98,930+26.8%
Rice, acres16,133+32.8%
Peanuts, acres1,293+100%
Vegetables, acres9,094−4.7%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Dunklin County accounts for 2.0% of farm sales in Missouri and 0.3% of the farms in Missouri. Rank Missouri counties for cotton.

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