The latest comes from recent figures released by the Oregon Department of Agriculture which say net farm income for farmers and ranchers was the highest it has been since 2004.
Net sales are the return to farmers and ranchers after expenses are taken out.
“Overall, it was a great year,” said Brent Searle, analyst with the Department of Agriculture.
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Net income for Oregon agriculture was nearly $1.03 billion, up $519 million from 2010. Gross sales from Oregon farms and ranches was $5.1 billion.
In Klamath County, 2011 gross agriculture sales were $283.7 million, an increase of about $41 million from 2010.
Klamath County’s agricultural output ranks it seventh among Oregon counties. Lake County, which had gross sales of $94 million in 2011, was 15th.
Marion County led the state in agriculture, mainly on the strength of its nursery and greenhouse stock and since those sales often march hand-in-hand with home building and home sales, may reflect some recovery in those industries. If so, that’s a good sign for home-builders and others whose livelihoods depend on home sales, construction and wood products.
That is all a bit speculative at the moment. But the raw figures are pretty significant and they suggest there’s a lot more money circulating within Oregon and Klamath County because of the upswing in agriculture sales than there was a year or two ago.
That’s a big deal when you look at the economic impact that agriculture has.
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