Photo from Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner/Weighs & Measures.
In 1916, Sunkist took out a full-page ad in the Saturday Evening Post with the slogan, "Drink an Orange." It was the first effort to persuade people to squeeze an orange and drink the juice. The ad offered a Sunkist orange extracter for 10 cents. This campaign was the earliest origin of orange juice for breakfast.
The Census of Agriculture is a complete count of farms and ranches in the United States and the people who operate them. Even small plots of land - whether rural or urban - growing fruit, vegetables or some food animals count if $1,000 or more of such products were raised and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the year the census is taken. The Census of Agriculture is taken only once every five years.
| Year | Number of Farms | Farm Land (acres) | Average Size of Farms (acres) | Percent of Land in Farms | Harvested Cropland (acres) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 1,035 | 57,809 | 56 | 2.2% | 12,806 |
| 2012 | 1,294 | 91,689 | 71 | 3.5% | 40,796 |
| 2007 | 1,734 | 108,463 | 63 | 4.2% | 25,829 |
| 2002 | 1,543 | 111,458 | 72 | 4.3% | 24,033 |
| 1997 | 1,226 | 130,838 | 107 | 5.1% | 23,805 |
| Year | Number of Farms | Farm Land (acres) | Average Size of Farms (acres) | Percent of Land in Farms | Harvested Cropland (acres) |
| 1992 | 1,446 | 183,569 | 127 | 7.1% | 29,347 |
| 1987 | 2,035 | 280,156 | 138 | 10.8% | 37,102 |
| 1982 | 2,331 | 317,757 | 136 | 12.2% | 53,130 |
| 1978 | 1,952 | 369,061 | 189 | 14.2% | 54,362 |
| 1974 | 1,797 | 400,500 | 223 | 15.4% | 64,806 |
| Year | Number of Farms | Farm Land (acres) | Average Size of Farms (acres) | Percent of Land in Farms | Harvested Cropland (acres) |
| 1969 | 2,804 | 557,770 | 199 | 21.4% | 84,319 |
| 1964 | 2,800 | 585,340 | 209 | 22.5% | 90,583 |
| 1959 | 4,811 | 479,011 | 100 | 18.4% | 126,952 |
| 1954 | 8,254 | 743,613 | 90 | 28.5% | 195,315 |
| 1950 | 11,973 | 855,563 | 72 | 32.8% | 229,047 |
| Year | Number of Farms | Farm Land (acres) | Average Size of Farms (acres) | Percent of Land in Farms | Harvested Cropland (acres) |
| 1940 | 12,475 | 596,552 | 48 | 22.9% | 249,886 |
| 1930 | 12,653 | 527,124 | 42 | 20.0% | 230,068 |
| 1920 | 12,444 | 882,333 | 71 | 33.5% | n/a |
| 1910 | 7,919 | 757,985 | 96 | 29.1% | n/a |
| 1900 | 6,577 | 895,663 | 136 | 34.4% | n/a |
n/a Data not available
Source: Census of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In 1850, the U.S. Census conducted its first count in the newly established Los Angeles County. Recorded then were 2,648 acres of improved agricultural land and 1,034,550 acres of unimproved agricultural land (probably mostly cattle range land).
