Farm Census

Polk County, Missouri

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

1,380 farms340,780 acres in farms$109 million in farm sales

No other county in Missouri with a published figure has more corn for silage, hay and haylage or beef cows than Polk County.

Its largest product group, cattle and calves, makes up 49.4% of farm sales, against 15.0% across Missouri.

Cattle and calves: 49.4%Cattle and calves49.4%Poultry and eggs: 31.0%Poultry and eggs31.0%Grains and oilseeds: 7.9%Grains and oilseeds7.9%Milk: 6.8%Milk6.8%Hay and other crops: 2.6%2.6%Hogs and pigs: 0.7%0.7%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.4%Sheep and goats: 0.4%Fruit and nuts: 0.3%0.3%Horses and mules: 0.2%Vegetables and melons: 0.1%Other animals: 0.1%Aquaculture: under 0.1%Cattle and calves: 49.4%Cattle and calves49.4%Poultry and eggs: 31.0%Poultry and eggs31.0%Grains and oilseeds: 7.9%7.9%Milk: 6.8%Milk6.8%Hay and other crops: 2.6%2.6%Hogs and pigs: 0.7%Nursery and greenhouse: 0.4%Sheep and goats: 0.4%Fruit and nuts: 0.3%Horses and mules: 0.2%Vegetables and melons: 0.1%Other animals: 0.1%Aquaculture: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Cattle and calves$53.8 million5th of 103
Poultry and eggs$33.8 million17th of 90
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$8.6 million82nd of 104
Milk from cows$7.4 million7th of 51
Hay and other crops$2.8 million32nd of 104
Hogs and pigs$805,00040th of 74
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$421,00030th of 59
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$418,00014th of 95
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$345,00022nd of 73
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$266,00030th of 89
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$160,00036th of 74
Other animals and animal products$93,00019th of 62
Aquaculture$10,0001st of 1

What the fields held

Polk County harvested 86,851 acres of cropland in 2022, 64th of 114 counties in Missouri. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 79% of that, soybeans 11%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage68,2800.13%
Soybeans9,302under 0.1%
Corn for silage4,5440.08%
Corn for grain1,732under 0.1%
Wheat1,681under 0.1%
Grain sorghum475under 0.1%
Oats270under 0.1%
Orchard land124under 0.1%
of which apples41under 0.1%
Berries34under 0.1%
Vegetables28under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: pecans.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms83.8%

Polk County ranks 16th of 114 counties in Missouri on this measure.

  • 112,379 acres of cropland, 33% of farmland
  • 205,773 acres of pastureland, 60% of farmland
  • 60,190 acres of woodland, 18% of farmland
  • 387 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

Farms in Polk County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 100 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 247 acres, 84th-largest of 114 in Missouri. The most common size class is 50–179 acres, with 34.3% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 3.8% of the total.

1–96%10–4926%50–17934%180–49920%500–99910%1,000–1,9992%2,000+2%
Polk County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Beef cows57,4340.20%
Laying hens536,3970.14%
Turkeys127,0980.13%
Cattle and calves110,0050.13%
Horses and ponies1,2530.05%
Sheep and lambs2,150under 0.1%
Goats1,037under 0.1%
Milk cows2,071under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs978under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 2022498under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Polk County's 1,380 farms are made by 2,448 producers. Their average age is 56.6, 1.3 years below the Missouri average. Women are 39.2% of them.

Under 3514%35–4411%45–5415%55–6425%65–7422%75+13%
Polk County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,562−11.7%
Land in farms, acres359,464−5.2%
Average farm size, acres230+7.4%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$99.4 million+9.6%
Beef cows, head56,448+1.7%
Laying hens, head518,738+3.4%
Turkeys, head313,648−59.5%
Hay and haylage, acres67,305+1.4%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Polk County accounts for 0.7% of farm sales in Missouri and 1.6% of the farms in Missouri. Rank Missouri counties for beef cows.

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