Toole County, Montana
Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture
383 farms1,191,112 acres in farms$119 million in farm sales
Among US counties with published figures, Toole County leads the country in barley.
Its wheat acreage grew between 2017 and 2022, the second-largest increase among the 100 leading wheat counties of 2017 with figures in both years.
Sales by product group
| Product group | Sales | Rank in state |
|---|---|---|
| Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas | $97.0 million | 5th of 49 |
| Cattle and calves | $9.3 million | 45th of 51 |
| Hogs and pigs | $4.2 million | 7th of 30 |
| Poultry and eggs | $3.3 million | 4th of 28 |
| Hay and other crops | $1.7 million | 31st of 37 |
What the fields held
Toole County harvested 515,874 acres of cropland in 2022, sixth of 56 counties in Montana. Wheat covered acreage equal to 57% of that, barley 21%.
| Crop | Acres | Share of US |
|---|---|---|
| Wheat | 296,170 | 0.80% |
| Barley | 108,343 | 4.5% |
| Hay and haylage | 21,676 | under 0.1% |
| Canola | 7,472 | 0.35% |
| Oats | 1,490 | 0.16% |
| Corn for grain | 730 | under 0.1% |
How much of the county is farmland
Share of the county land in farms97.2%
Toole County ranks fifth of 56 counties in Montana on this measure.
- 884,212 acres of cropland, 74% of farmland
- 287,454 acres of pastureland, 24% of farmland
- 8,519 acres irrigated
Farm sizes
Farms in Toole County run larger than the national pattern: the median farm has 1,843 acres against 72 for the US. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 3,110 acres, 24th-largest of 55 in Montana. The most common size class is 2,000+ acres, with 48.3% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 61.9% of the total.
Barns, pens and pastures
| Animals | Head | Share of US |
|---|---|---|
| Sheep and lambs | 3,072 | 0.06% |
| Laying hens | 121,328 | under 0.1% |
| Hogs and pigs | 14,756 | under 0.1% |
| Cattle and calves | 11,535 | under 0.1% |
Withheld: beef cows, milk cows and horses and ponies.
Who farms here
Decisions on Toole County's 383 farms are made by 701 producers. Their average age is 57.9, 1.4 years below the Montana average. Women are 36.5% of them.
Five years earlier
| Measure | 2017 | Change to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Farms | 362 | +5.8% |
| Land in farms, acres | 1,094,910 | +8.8% |
| Average farm size, acres | 3,025 | +2.8% |
| Farm products sold (current dollars) | $84.2 million | +41.1% |
| Barley, acres | 82,404 | +31.5% |
| Wheat, acres | 216,164 | +37.0% |
| Canola, acres | 11,694 | −36.1% |
| Sheep and lambs, head | 2,364 | +29.9% |
Nearest rivals
- Barley ahead of Chouteau County, MT and Fremont County, ID
- Wheat between Cavalier County, ND and Adams County, WA
- Canola between Morton County, ND and Flathead County, MT
- Oats between Crow Wing County, MN and Livingston County, NY
Counties with a similar sales mix
- Hill County, Montana largest group: grains and oilseeds; mix match 99%
- Jefferson County, Illinois largest group: grains and oilseeds; mix match 99%
- Franklin County, Indiana largest group: grains and oilseeds; mix match 99%
Toole County accounts for 2.6% of farm sales in Montana and 1.6% of the farms in Montana. Rank Montana counties for barley.
Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.