Farmers at odds amid report

The number of farms in the Rio Grande Valley, and the amount of income earned per farm, has increased slightly in recent years, according to a census of the nation's agricultural industry released this month.

But local farmers and growers do not think these statistics paint a complete picture of the region's farming business, which in some sectors is struggling.

"I don't think there's been much new (farmland) brought into production ... I'm not aware of anything in terms of a big increase," said Ray Prewett, president of Texas Citrus Mutual, an association of local citrus growers.

According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture, released in February by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service, the number of farms in Cameron County increased by 11 percent from 2002 to 2007. The number of farms in Hidalgo County increased by only 2 percent, but the acres of farmland increased by 22 percent, the census says.

The market value of Cameron County farms' crop and livestock sales increased by 51 percent during that five-year period, and by 56 percent in Hidalgo County, according to the census.

Although the Valley's agricultural business has its ups and downs, with leaner and healthier years, such a sudden upswing in acreage, and an increase in farms, doesn't make much sense, local growers said.

"I think most people in agriculture would question that we have a 22 percent increase in land," Prewett said. "Our citrus acreage is pretty stable right now, but we are losing some acreage to subdivisions. And I'm pretty sure for vegetables, acreage is down a fair amount."

The latest census might show an increase in farms and acreage partly because the USDA was able to interview more farmers than in past surveys, said USDA spokeswoman Marci Hilt.

"We did go out of our way to reach more farmers," Hilt said.

Overall, the census shows a nationwide increase in very small farms, with sales of less than $1,000, and very large farms, with sales of more than $1 million. About 60 percent of U.S. farms report less than $10,000 in sales of agricultural products, and about 65 percent of farmers also work outside of the farm.

The number of mid-sized, family farms has decreased since 2002, however, Hilt said. Many local farms fall into the mid-sized category, with $100,000 to $500,000 in sales, area growers said.

"The sector that went up. Those are part-time farmers," said Sam Simmons, Harlingen cotton grower. It's the full-time farmers, like himself, that are struggling, he said.

The economic downturn has hit cotton growers hard, with the price of cotton dropping from a high of 92 cents a pound last year to 44 cents a pound this year, Simmons said. Meanwhile, the cost of fertilizer and other materials has increased.

"Farmers are really caught in a bind. We have to grow a crop in order to pay for anything, but the prices keep going down," he said.

It's possible more farmers came back into the business from 2002 to 2007, increasing the number of farms for a time, said Dennis Holbrook, owner of South-Tex Organics in Mission.

In 2002, Mexico owed the United States more than 1.5 million acre feet of water from its reservoirs, and some farmers left the business because they couldn't obtain enough water to irrigate crops. Mexico paid its water debt in 2005.

"The water issue has somewhat been resolved, and the land's available and the water's available," he said. "This is good farmland in South Texas, and if there are adequate resources, and we feel there's adequate demand, there's no reason it should be utilized."

However, Holbrook doubts there are many more farmers newly entering the business in the region. Starting a farm is just too expensive for many people, he said.

"Unless you've got ready access to the land, or are currently in the business, or have ready cash, it's tough to get into agriculture," Holbrook said.

So although more people might be farming part time, local growers say they doubt the region is seeing an upswing that will last.

"Agriculture is kind of a merry-go-round. Things change continuously," Holbrook said.