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Number & Size of Farms
Los Angeles County

1900-2022

Farm in Los Angeles County

Photo from Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner/Weighs & Measures.


Sunkist, Orange Juice, Saturday Evening Post, 1916
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)
2022 766 69,224 90 2.7% 20,422
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
Year Number of Farms Farm Land (acres) Average Size of Farms (acres) Percent of Land in Farms Harvested Cropland (acres)
1997 1,226 130,838 107 5.1% 23,805
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
Year Number of Farms Farm Land (acres) Average Size of Farms (acres) Percent of Land in Farms Harvested Cropland (acres)
1974 1,797 400,500 223 15.4% 64,806
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
Year Number of Farms Farm Land (acres) Average Size of Farms (acres) Percent of Land in Farms Harvested Cropland (acres)
1950 11,973 855,563 72 32.8% 229,047
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).