Agriculture & Forestry Sector
Description
Companies in this industry sector grow crops, raise or fatten animals for animal products, and grow and harvest timber. Major crop production companies include AMAGGI, Chiquita, Dole Food Company, Fresh Del Monte Produce, Sunkist Growers, and Total Produce; major animal production companies include Agri Beef, Dairy Farmers of America, JBS SA, and WH Group. Major timber operations include PotlatchDeltic, Domtar, Stora Enso, and Weyerhaeuser.
The global agricultural market was about $12 trillion in 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.6%, according to The Business Research Company. According to Investopedia, the US, China, India, and Russia are among the top cereal and vegetable crop producers. Top wood product sources include the US, China, Russia, and Canada, according to Forestry.com.
The US agriculture and forestry sector includes about 2 million farms and about 15,000 timber companies with combined annual revenue of about $1.5 trillion.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Demand is driven by government agricultural policy programs, food consumption trends, and lumber demand. Profitability depends on efficient operations. Large companies have advantages in vertically integrated operations and economies of scale in purchasing and marketing. Small operations can compete effectively by supplying local markets, specializing in heirloom or organic crops or those that have not been genetically modified (GM), or raising animals in less restrictive environments on hormone-free diets.
PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Major farm products include cattle and calves, corn, and soybeans, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Crop Production
Crop farming operations consist of soil preparation; planting; application of fertilizer, pesticides, and water; and harvesting. Most farmers concentrate on one or a few crops, depending on local soil, weather, and water conditions. Many farms harvest multiple crops multiple times during the year.
Farmers must accurately measure the number of seeds per acre: crowded seeds can delay maturity and stunt growth, while low plant populations result in poor yields. Farmers closely monitor crop yield per acre, which is affected by weather, fertilizer, and pesticide applications and proper crop and seed selection. Yields can fluctuate yearly.
Most crop farms are highly mechanized for activities like tilling, planting, and applying fertilizer. Harvesting is often done using specialized machinery, but also may require large amounts of manual labor, depending on the crop.
Common inputs include seed, fertilizer, chemicals for weed control, fuel, electricity, machinery, and repairs. Recent technological advances include new strains of hybridized and GM seed and improved fertilizers and chemicals for controlling weeds, pests, and disease. Farm machine innovations have improved seed planting, threshing, and the transfer of grains and oilseeds to silos and elevators. New GPS guidance and autosteer technologies can improve crop yield, and the use of drones allows farmers to inspect fields quicker and more efficiently.
Animal Production
Livestock and poultry operators breed animals, supply feed, maintain animal health, provide shelter, and dispose of animal wastes. Feed (typically corn or soybean meal) is the largest direct cost of raising animals. Farmers must balance the cost of feed against its nutritional value.
Besides feed, major inputs common to most livestock and poultry farms include fencing, vaccines, animal branding and identification tools, and transport vehicles. Advances in technology include improved genetics and breeding, radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that monitor and trace livestock, improved ultrasound monitoring in cows, and antibiotics to reduce illness and disease outbreaks. Drones can be used to monitor and track animals.
Timber Production
Timber operations can be divided into forestry operations and logging operations. Forestry involves the care of growing forests, including planting and tending trees (silviculture), controlling erosion, creating fire breaks, surveying, removing diseased or damaged trees, and marking trees for logging. Logging involves felling trees, removing branches and top, cutting into lengths ("bucking"), hauling the logs out of the forest, sorting logs by type, loading logs onto trucks, and trucking to sawmills or other destinations. To be able to remove logs from a forest, operators often must first build access roads. Timber operations may also enter into management contracts with independent logging companies that harvest the timber; management then sells the timber to brokers or at market.
Drones are being used in forestry to survey and monitor large areas quicker than humans can. They are increasingly showing up in firefighting activities, especially for large forest fires where a higher vantage point and thermal sensors can save trees, property, and lives.
Federal, state, and local governments are major owners of timberland in the US. Timber companies may own or lease timberland or hold licenses for logging rights on private or public land.
The global agricultural market was about $12 trillion in 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.6%, according to The Business Research Company. According to Investopedia, the US, China, India, and Russia are among the top cereal and vegetable crop producers. Top wood product sources include the US, China, Russia, and Canada, according to Forestry.com.
The US agriculture and forestry sector includes about 2 million farms and about 15,000 timber companies with combined annual revenue of about $1.5 trillion.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Demand is driven by government agricultural policy programs, food consumption trends, and lumber demand. Profitability depends on efficient operations. Large companies have advantages in vertically integrated operations and economies of scale in purchasing and marketing. Small operations can compete effectively by supplying local markets, specializing in heirloom or organic crops or those that have not been genetically modified (GM), or raising animals in less restrictive environments on hormone-free diets.
PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Major farm products include cattle and calves, corn, and soybeans, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Crop Production
Crop farming operations consist of soil preparation; planting; application of fertilizer, pesticides, and water; and harvesting. Most farmers concentrate on one or a few crops, depending on local soil, weather, and water conditions. Many farms harvest multiple crops multiple times during the year.
Farmers must accurately measure the number of seeds per acre: crowded seeds can delay maturity and stunt growth, while low plant populations result in poor yields. Farmers closely monitor crop yield per acre, which is affected by weather, fertilizer, and pesticide applications and proper crop and seed selection. Yields can fluctuate yearly.
Most crop farms are highly mechanized for activities like tilling, planting, and applying fertilizer. Harvesting is often done using specialized machinery, but also may require large amounts of manual labor, depending on the crop.
Common inputs include seed, fertilizer, chemicals for weed control, fuel, electricity, machinery, and repairs. Recent technological advances include new strains of hybridized and GM seed and improved fertilizers and chemicals for controlling weeds, pests, and disease. Farm machine innovations have improved seed planting, threshing, and the transfer of grains and oilseeds to silos and elevators. New GPS guidance and autosteer technologies can improve crop yield, and the use of drones allows farmers to inspect fields quicker and more efficiently.
Animal Production
Livestock and poultry operators breed animals, supply feed, maintain animal health, provide shelter, and dispose of animal wastes. Feed (typically corn or soybean meal) is the largest direct cost of raising animals. Farmers must balance the cost of feed against its nutritional value.
Besides feed, major inputs common to most livestock and poultry farms include fencing, vaccines, animal branding and identification tools, and transport vehicles. Advances in technology include improved genetics and breeding, radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that monitor and trace livestock, improved ultrasound monitoring in cows, and antibiotics to reduce illness and disease outbreaks. Drones can be used to monitor and track animals.
Timber Production
Timber operations can be divided into forestry operations and logging operations. Forestry involves the care of growing forests, including planting and tending trees (silviculture), controlling erosion, creating fire breaks, surveying, removing diseased or damaged trees, and marking trees for logging. Logging involves felling trees, removing branches and top, cutting into lengths ("bucking"), hauling the logs out of the forest, sorting logs by type, loading logs onto trucks, and trucking to sawmills or other destinations. To be able to remove logs from a forest, operators often must first build access roads. Timber operations may also enter into management contracts with independent logging companies that harvest the timber; management then sells the timber to brokers or at market.
Drones are being used in forestry to survey and monitor large areas quicker than humans can. They are increasingly showing up in firefighting activities, especially for large forest fires where a higher vantage point and thermal sensors can save trees, property, and lives.
Federal, state, and local governments are major owners of timberland in the US. Timber companies may own or lease timberland or hold licenses for logging rights on private or public land.
Table of Contents
- Industry Overview
- Quarterly Industry Update
- Business Challenges
- Business Trends
- Industry Opportunities
- Call Preparation Questions
- Financial Information
- Industry Forecast
- Web Links and Acronyms
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