Description
In 1776, the year the Declaration of Independence was signed, four in five Americans were farmers. 100 more years later, one in ten Americans farmed.
Thanks to technology, one farmer can feed 40 people in the city but there were three times as many people farms at this time. Fast forward to the present day, according to the National Cattleman's Beef Association, one farmer with advanced technology can feed 129 people in the city. We have seen revolutions in industry, mass production in factories, machines and tools, mass exodus of populations from the farms to large cities, small cities shrinking or disappearing, smaller labor forces, increased education and technology including those affecting farming and ranching.
Modern advances have allowed and required smaller farms to grow to survive. Many small 40-to-80-acre farms have given way to larger farms several hundred to several thousand acres in size. Cattlemen with small herds grew and increased their operations to survive, while work forces became smaller, younger farmers moved off the farms to the city for another kind of life. Currently, farms and ranchers are growing older and aging out, work forces are becoming more specialized specific to operations and crops, large amounts of capital, amassing of larger amounts of land for production, modernization, and business education and management is more necessary for farmers and ranchers to survive.
Today's farms and ranches are well-educated, or college educated, tough in character and strength, leaders in local - national and international businesses and politics. They are smart, savvy, and sophisticated. They are skilled and seasoned negotiators, business owners, salesmen, and managers with effective experience. They are communicators dealing regularly with bankers, investors, and knowledgeable in finance, money matters including banking, stocks, commodities, investments, economic.