Farm operations
1,691
Avg 1,419 ac / farm
2022 USDA Census CA · FIPS 06029 Top quartile by state sales HEAVY MIXED
Kern County, California - Farm Data
Agricultural and commodity intelligence for Kern County. Ranked #4 of 58 counties in California.
2,399,512 acres of agricultural land
- Cropland
- 41.4% 994,576 acres
- Other land
- 58.6% 1,404,936 acres
USDA NASS · 2022 Census of Agriculture
Kern County received $14.21 in Census government payments per agricultural acre, 1.0× the California county median of $14.73.
According to the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture.
- $14.21
- government payments per agricultural acre
- $14.73
- California county median per acre
- 0.96×
- California median per acre
Payments per acre use the same NASS county table for receipts and acreage. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series.
According to the 2022 USDA NASS Census of Agriculture, Kern County, California is a MIXED county with federal farm payments per acre that stamp HEAVY; commodity sales sit far above state median and it shows below-typical federal dependence.
Commodity sales
$5.0B
16.5× state median -- Far above state median
Federal payments
$34.1M
0.7% of sales -- Below-typical dependence
Net farm income
$1.0B
2022 cash income -- Well above-typical net income
A
Farm economy grade: A -- Kern County's net farm income sits at the 100th percentile among 3,046 NASS-reporting counties nationally (2022 Census). Percentile-benchmarked, not a same-state comparison like the tier label above.
What the Kern County Farm Data Shows
Kern County, California reads as a MIXED county with HEAVY federal payment intensity. In the NASS Census vocabulary this portal uses, cropland is 25% to 50% of agricultural land with the balance in pasture, range, woodland or farmsteads, so row-crop and livestock-side programs are both in play; payments per agricultural acre fall in the second-highest national quintile, $11.30 to $18.39 an acre, heavy federal support relative to the acreage.
The state comparisons on this page use the 56 of 58 California counties with published commodity sales (2 withheld by NASS to protect respondents are left out, not counted as zero), averaging the two central values when the count is even. Payments per acre use the 53 counties that report both receipts and acreage, and net-income peers are the 47 that reported a profit.
Pair the payment peers below before treating any single county as representative of California.
Read with Kern County
Nearest NASS federal-payment peers and $/acre poles for Kern (HEAVY · MIXED), replacing the old fixed Related and same-state alphabetical strip.
HEAVY MIXED
Barnes County, ND · DENSE
$34.1M federal receipts is higher by $45K than Kern; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs MIXED.
Marshall County, MN · DENSE
$34.2M federal receipts is higher by $135K than Kern; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs MIXED.
Cass County, ND · DENSE
$34.3M federal receipts is higher by $224K than Kern; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs MIXED.
Grand Forks County, ND · DENSE
$33.8M federal receipts is lower by $308K than Kern; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs MIXED.
Hill County (HEAVY $/acre pole)
Hill sits near Kern on payments-per-acre ($14.41) while total receipts differ.
Dewey County (HEAVY $/acre pole)
Dewey sits near Kern on payments-per-acre ($13.78) while total receipts differ.
California ERS state roll-up
Kern stamps HEAVY · MIXED inside California's NASS county table, open the state ERS payment stack next.
Census payments leaderboard
Open the national ranking of U.S. counties by NASS federal farm program payments to see the counties around Kern under the HEAVY intensity band.
What to do with this
Where to go after Kern County, California:
- See how California compares nationally on ERS farm payments and income. California state page
- Browse the full county table to compare payment intensity across the country. All counties
- Understand what actually drives county-level farm payments. Read the guide
County figures (2022 NASS Census of Agriculture) are a separate population from USDA ERS state and national payment series and must not be summed together.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many farms are in Kern County, California?
Kern County, California has 1,691 farms (2022 USDA Census). Average farm size 1,419 acres; land stamp MIXED.
What is the total agricultural production value of Kern County?
Kern County's total commodity sales are $5.0B (2022 Census of Agriculture), ranking #4 among 58 counties in California.
How much federal farm assistance does Kern County receive?
Kern County received $34.1M in federal government farm program receipts (2022), stamping HEAVY on NASS payments-per-acre ($14.21/acre) with a MIXED land mix.
What is the net farm income in Kern County?
Net cash farm income for operations in Kern County is $1.0B (2022 Census of Agriculture).
State Overview
California
58 counties · View state farm data
Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service 2022 Census of Agriculture · 2022
Dollar values reflect calendar year 2022 farm operations data.
PlainFarmData is an independent data portal, not affiliated with USDA, FSA, or any government agency. For official program eligibility or application guidance, contact your local USDA Farm Service Agency office.
Intensity stamp HEAVY · land stamp MIXED (NASS payments-per-acre / cropland share bands).
NASS withholds commodity sales for 2 California counties with too few farm operations to publish without identifying individual producers. Those counties are excluded from the peer median on this page rather than counted as zero sales.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified. Verify with USDA NASS Census of Agriculture →
County farm figures on this page are rendered from the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture, no number is typed in by an editor. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.