Farm Census

Sanpete County, Utah

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

941 farms277,113 acres in farms$209 million in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Sanpete County ranks second for turkeys and sixth for sheep and lambs.

Its largest product group with a published figure, poultry and eggs, makes up 44.2% of farm sales, against 11.1% across Utah.

Poultry and eggs: 44.2%Poultry and eggs44.2%Milk: 22.0%Milk22.0%Cattle and calves: 15.7%Cattle and calves15.7%Hay and other crops: 9.9%Hay and other crops9.9%Sheep and goats: 4.5%Sheep and goats4.5%Grains and oilseeds: 1.8%1.8%Horses and mules: 0.8%0.8%Withheld groups: 0.6%Vegetables and melons: 0.4%0.4%Other animals: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Nursery and greenhouse: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%Poultry and eggs: 44.2%Poultry and eggs44.2%Milk: 22.0%Milk22.0%Cattle and calves: 15.7%Cattle and calves15.7%Hay and other crops: 9.9%9.9%Sheep and goats: 4.5%4.5%Grains and oilseeds: 1.8%1.8%Horses and mules: 0.8%Withheld groups: 0.6%Vegetables and melons: 0.4%Other animals: 0.1%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Nursery and greenhouse: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: hogs and pigs and aquaculture products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Poultry and eggs$92.3 million1st of 20
Milk from cows$46.0 million6th of 11
Cattle and calves$32.7 million3rd of 26
Hay and other crops$20.6 million7th of 29
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$9.3 million1st of 22
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$3.7 million7th of 18
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$1.8 million2nd of 25
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$883,0005th of 18
Other animals and animal products$205,00011th of 23
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$71,00012th of 16
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$49,00015th of 16
Christmas trees and short-rotation woody crops$2,0003rd of 3

What the fields held

Sanpete County harvested 49,624 acres of cropland in 2022, sixth of 29 counties in Utah. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 89% of that.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage43,9440.08%
Corn for silage2,176under 0.1%
Barley1,3360.05%
Wheat1,112under 0.1%
Vegetables221under 0.1%
of which potatoes8under 0.1%
Orchard land13under 0.1%
of which apples3under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: corn for grain, oats, grapes and berries.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms27.2%

Sanpete County ranks ninth of 29 counties in Utah on this measure.

  • 73,806 acres of cropland, 27% of farmland
  • 183,513 acres of pastureland, 66% of farmland
  • 12,319 acres of woodland, 4% of farmland
  • 53,843 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in Sanpete County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 30 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 294 acres, 16th-largest of 27 in Utah. The most common size class is 10–49 acres, with 36.5% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 6.6% of the total.

1–923%10–4936%50–17920%180–49910%500–9994%1,000–1,9993%2,000+4%
Sanpete County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Turkeys3,322,4343.4%
Sheep and lambs64,2771.3%
Horses and ponies4,2940.18%
Milk cows7,9080.08%
Cattle and calves52,7970.06%
Beef cows14,432under 0.1%
Goats1,177under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs720under 0.1%
Laying hens2,641under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 202257under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Sanpete County's 941 farms are made by 1,781 producers. Their average age is 56.8, 0.2 years above the Utah average. Women are 35.5% of them.

Under 359%35–4417%45–5412%55–6428%65–7424%75+10%
Sanpete County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,003−6.2%
Land in farms, acres301,691−8.1%
Average farm size, acres301−2.3%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$172 million+21.6%
Turkeys, head3,050,306+8.9%
Sheep and lambs, head68,645−6.4%
Horses and ponies, head2,528+69.9%
Milk cows, head7,476+5.8%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Sanpete County accounts for 8.9% of farm sales in Utah and 5.4% of the farms in Utah. Rank Utah counties for turkeys.

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