Value of Idaho ag production down 6 percent

By Sean Ellis

Idaho Farm Bureau Federation

POCATELLO – As expected, the total value of Idaho’s agricultural production declined in 2023 compared with the record year of 2022.

According to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, the value of Idaho agricultural production totaled $11 billion in 2023, down 6 percent, or almost $700 million, from the record total of $11.7 billion in 2022.

The prices that farmers and ranchers receive for their commodities reached record or near-record level levels in 2022. But so did input costs.

While most farm-level commodity prices are now on the decline, many input costs have remained high.

In some cases, such as fuel and fertilizer, costs have decreased a little, but not near as much as farm commodity prices have, said Rupert farmer Mike Wilkins.

“Our … costs haven’t come down as much as our prices have,” he said.

According to NASS, the value of livestock production in Idaho totaled $6.4 billion in 2023, a 5 percent drop from 2022. The value of Idaho crop production totaled $4.57 billion in 2023, a 6 percent decline from 2022.

Top 10 Idaho ag commodities

In terms of total value of production, milk remained Idaho’s top ag commodity in 2023 with a total production value of $3.5 billion. That was a 19 percent drop from the record $4.3 billion set in 2022.

Idaho milk production totaled a record 16.8 billion pounds in 2023, up 1 percent over the previous record in 2022 and up 15 percent since 2017, according to NASS.

Cattle and calves ranked as the state’s No. 2 agricultural commodity in 2023 with a record high value of production of $2.1 billion, a 21 percent increase over 2022 ($1.75 billion), which was also a record.

Potatoes ranked as Idaho’s No. 3 ag commodity in value and were again Idaho’s top crop in 2023, with a total value of production of $1.4 billion. That was a 9 percent drop from the record of $1.5 billion set in 2022.

Hay ranked as the state’s No. 4 ag commodity in 2023 with a total value of production of $1 billion, a 24 percent decline compared with the record high of $1.4 billion in 2022.

Wheat came in at No. 5 with a total value of $613 million, a 19 percent decline from 2022.

Those top five commodities had a combined production value of $8.65 billion, which represented 79 percent of the total value of all ag production in the state in 2023.

Rounding out the Top 10

The total value of Idaho sugar beet production in 2023 soared 38 percent over 2022 to $600 million, making sugar beets Idaho’s No. 6 ag commodity.

NASS placed total Idaho barley value at a record $469 million in 2023, up 3 percent over 2022.

Corn for grain was valued at $158 million, a 6 percent drop from 2022, and Idaho onion production was valued at $110 million, down 15 percent from 2022.

The total value of Idaho hop production was put at $91 million, down 10 percent from 2022.

According to NASS, most other Idaho ag commodities outside the top 10 dropped in total production value in 2023. That included food trout, which decreased 15 percent to $37 million, and peppermint oil, which dropped 21 percent to $21 million.

The value of dry edible bean production in Idaho dropped 5 percent, to $35 million, in 2023, honey fell 36 percent, to $4.8 million, and dry edible peas dropped 58 percent, to $3.6 million.

No. 1 in the United States

Idaho ranked No. 1 in the country in the production of five different agricultural commodities in 2023, according to NASS: potatoes, barley, peppermint oil, alfalfa hay and food trout.

Idaho produced 33 percent of the nation’s potato supply in 2023, 33 percent of the U.S. barley crop, 40 percent of the nation’s peppermint oil, 9 percent of the U.S. alfalfa supply, and 37 percent of the nation’s food trout.

Being top dog in a certain commodity may not make a farmer any more money, but it is a source of personal pride, said Soda Springs barley farmer Scott Brown.

“We’re proud to be the No. 1 barley state,” he said.

The state also ranked No. 2 in sugar beet and hop production, and No. 3 in milk and cheese production.

Idaho ranked No. 4 in dry onions, spring wheat and lentils, and No. 5 in all wheat, dry edible peas and wool.

Idaho ranked No. 6 in all hay, dry edible beans and sheep and lambs, No. 7 in corn silage, No. 8 in winter wheat, No. 10 in honey and No. 11 in cattle and calves.