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America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 8:49 am
by jacob
What is going on in Missouri? How do you explain the different growing patterns on the two sides of the river. I presume it has to do with politics/policies/subsidies rather than geography?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breadbask ... n_belt.svg

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:50 am
by enigmaT120
http://crops.missouri.edu/audit/corn.htm

I'm not sure what you mean. Or do you mean compared to IL?

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:56 am
by jacob
Yes, there's less corn production in MO than IL when comparing counties across the river. I'm wondering exactly why that is.

Similar differences from state to state can be seen in terms of tree cover ... and that's driven by land management policies. Compare, e.g. PA, NY, and OH. (Or US vs Canada on the eastern seaboard).

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 10:07 am
by jennypenny

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 10:56 am
by IlliniDave
It is sort of odd. Jennypenny's map show's Illinois to be sort of an island of relatively low livestock production in the area. I have no explanation why land in Missouri is not used similar to adjacent land in Illinois, though.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 11:00 am
by cmonkey
Well the southern half is covered by the Ozarks. I'm sure that explains why there isn't much production down there. The 'no production counties' line up directly on the Ozark range.

Image

The north half might be due to climatic/geographic differences. If you look closely, you'll notice it extends up into Iowa as well which would help negate any political explainations.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 12:15 pm
by Riggerjack
Look in Google.maps. the.Missouri side is rougher terrain. The dark green is forests, where the land is too steep for easy farming.

This ties back to what I have said elsewhere, that there is further expansion of farmland available, if prices ever justify farming marginal land. Not that I am advocating such a thing.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 1:15 pm
by C40
As I recall, the northern half of Missouri is a lot of farmland. Just not corn, I suppose.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 3:10 pm
by 7Wannabe5
You might want to examine soil maps also. Marginal profits might have contributed to magnified differences in crop choice due to slight difference in soil composition.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 3:14 pm
by jacob
@7wb5 - That's why I suspected subsidies. I figure that they drive the financial decision making and what to plant and grow(*). W/o this, I suspect the breadbasket would be capable of growing a multitude of crops albeit not as profitably.

(*) Cf solar technology which may or may not even be viable w/o subsidies.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 7:06 pm
by Laura Ingalls
I think there are lots of factors at work.

Soil fertility, flatness or notof the topography,

I know in Southern Iowa and Northern Missouri people have multiple crappy income streams I.e. small cow/calf operation, logging, town jobs, EITC, sublegal stuff, and rural people are poorer than town people.

In Northwest Iowa and Southeastern South Dakota its go big or go home farming. It takes massive capital to buy equipment and inputs. DH has a high school classmate that farms 9000 acres (just him and his elderly father). His spouse works in town. Generally farmers are some of the most affluent people around.
Poor people live in town.

It's cultural two different places even if it looks pretty similar driving down the interstate :D

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:00 pm
by Riggerjack
And if you look at the farming in Missouri, by Google earth, you see farms bounded by woods. If you look across the river, you see farms, bounded by farms.

If a map of corn production by county didn't reflect that, I'd be suspicious. But now I'm curious about productivity per acre. The woods will cut down sunlight, some. Everywhere I have seen corn fields, was flatland. Not that Missouri is without flatlands. There just seems to be a lot less.

Re: America's breadbasket

Posted: Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:04 pm
by Riggerjack
https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Ma ... County/#cr

For all the corn stats you ever wanted.