Farm operations
880
Avg 305 ac / farm
2022 USDA Census IA · FIPS 19141 880 farms Top quartile (#19/99) 94% cropland HEAVY CROP-HEAVY
O Brien County, Iowa - Farm Data
Agricultural and commodity intelligence for O Brien County. Ranked #19 of 99 counties in Iowa.
268K acres of agricultural land
- Cropland
- 94.3% 253K acres
- Other land
- 5.7% 15K acres
USDA NASS · 2022 Census of Agriculture
O Brien County received $18.05 in Census government payments per agricultural acre, 0.7× the Iowa county median of $25.16.
According to the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture.
- $18.05
- government payments per agricultural acre
- $25.16
- Iowa county median per acre
- 0.72×
- Iowa 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.
880 farms · $650.3M sales
O Brien County, Iowa reports 880 farms and $650.3M in commodity sales in the 2022 USDA NASS Census of Agriculture, ranking #636 of 2943 U.S. counties by federal farm program payments. According to the Census extract on PlainFarmData, in-state commodity-sales rank is #19 of 99 counties in Iowa; Census county totals are not a roll-up of USDA ERS state payment series.
- In-state sales rank #19 of 99
- National payments rank #636 of 2943
- Govt payments / sales ratio 0.7%
Commodity sales
$650.3M
1.6× state median -- Above state median
Federal payments
$4.8M
0.7% of sales -- Below-typical dependence
Net farm income
$218.6M
2022 cash income -- Typical net income
A
Farm economy grade: A -- O Brien County's net farm income sits at the 97th percentile among 3,046 NASS-reporting counties nationally (2022 Census). Percentile-benchmarked, not a same-state comparison like the tier label above.
What the O Brien County Farm Data Shows
O Brien County, Iowa reported 880 farm operations in the 2022 USDA Census of Agriculture, generating $650.3M in total commodity sales and receiving $4.8M in federal farm program payments. Intensity stamp HEAVY ($18.05/acre); land stamp CROP-HEAVY. Net cash farm income came in at $218.6M. In-state sales rank #19 of 99 in Iowa.
Of 268,038 acres agricultural land, cropland dominates at 252,795 acres (94.3%) - a CROP-HEAVY profile where ARC/PLC eligibility and crop insurance density matter more than pasture-side disaster titles. Federal intensity is HEAVY; pair the ABS payment peers below before treating any single county as representative of Iowa.
Land Use
$18.05 per acre of agricultural land · the median Iowa county receives $25.16. Payments per acre normalise federal support for farm size; both figures come from the same USDA NASS 2022 Census county table.
Total Ag Land
268,038 acres
Cropland
252,795 acres
Avg Farm Size
305 ac
Cropland share of agricultural land 94.3%
252,795 cropland acres · CROP-HEAVY stamp.
Land Use Breakdown
| Category | Acres | Share of Ag Land |
|---|---|---|
| Total agricultural land | 268,038 | 100.0% |
| Cropland | 252,795 | 94.3% |
| Pasture, range, woodland, other | 15,243 | 5.7% |
| Average farm size | 305 | acres / farm |
Frequently Asked Questions
How many farms are in O Brien County, Iowa?
O Brien County, Iowa has 880 farms (2022 USDA Census). Average farm size 305 acres; land stamp CROP-HEAVY.
What is the total agricultural production value of O Brien County?
O Brien County's total commodity sales are $650.3M (2022 Census of Agriculture), ranking #19 among 99 counties in Iowa.
How much federal farm assistance does O Brien County receive?
O Brien County received $4.8M in federal government farm program receipts (2022), stamping HEAVY on NASS payments-per-acre ($18.05/acre) with a CROP-HEAVY land mix.
What is the net farm income in O Brien County?
Net cash farm income for operations in O Brien County is $218.6M (2022 Census of Agriculture).
Read with O Brien County
Nearest NASS federal-payment peers and $/acre poles for O Brien (HEAVY · CROP-HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Related and same-state alphabetical strip.
HEAVY CROP-HEAVY
Sublette County, WY · MID
$4.8M federal receipts is higher by $10K than O Brien; land stamp PASTURE-LED vs CROP-HEAVY.
Wapello County, IA · DENSE
$4.8M federal receipts is lower by $11K than O Brien; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs CROP-HEAVY.
Chippewa County, MN · HEAVY
$4.8M federal receipts is lower by $11K than O Brien; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs CROP-HEAVY.
Bacon County, GA · DENSE
$4.9M federal receipts is higher by $14K than O Brien; land stamp MIXED vs CROP-HEAVY.
Newton County (HEAVY $/acre pole)
Newton sits near O Brien on payments-per-acre ($18.07) while total receipts differ.
Bourbon County (HEAVY $/acre pole)
Bourbon sits near O Brien on payments-per-acre ($17.97) while total receipts differ.
Iowa ERS state roll-up
O Brien stamps HEAVY · CROP-HEAVY inside Iowa's NASS county table, open the state ERS payment stack next.
Census payments leaderboard (#636)
O Brien ranks #636 of 2943 on NASS federal farm program payments under the HEAVY intensity band.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
What to do with this
O Brien County, Iowa stamps HEAVY · CROP-HEAVY in the 2022 NASS Census, ranking #636 of 2943 U.S. counties by federal farm program payments. Three places to go next:
- See how Iowa compares nationally on ERS farm payments and income. Iowa 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.
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.