Counties with the most farmland in North Dakota
Farmland across the U.S. is disappearing by the millions of acres each decade by some estimates as sprawling urban development driven by rising housing costs pushes further into rural pastures.
The farmland that still exists in the U.S. is heavily dedicated to growing plants that Americans can't consume—grass. That grass, accounting for more than 300 million acres now, feeds our livestock, provides sod for new development, and serves as a cover crop to protect soil health between harvests.
Demand for major crops like corn and soybeans to feed Americans is only forecast by the USDA to grow in the coming decade, and demand for U.S. agricultural exports is expected to grow similarly.
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the way people purchased and consumed food, placing renewed attention on an increasingly consolidated agricultural industry where family farms have been swallowed up by large food corporations.
And after shifting behaviors caused massive economic swings in the U.S. and elsewhere, the Russian invasion of Ukraine forced food producers to once again account for yet another shock with so much of the world's grain capital taken offline by warfare.
War and corporate interests aside, farms have also had to reckon with a changing climate. Wheat fields were once commonplace across the country, but drought conditions of late have caused farmers to give up growing the crop entirely. Agitated by climate change, the shortage of water in parts of the country coupled with higher interest rates and the ongoing war in Ukraine are making agricultural businesses harder to run profitably.
To illustrate where American farms still persevere, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the most farmland in North Dakota using data from the Agriculture Department's Farm Service Agency. Farmers reported the data as mandated by participation in USDA income support programs, including Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage as well as loan assistance. Counties are ranked by total acres of farmland.
In North Dakota, there are 34,372,835 acres of farmland, with native grass being the most common crop.
#25. Wells
- Farmland: 634,152 acres (1.8% of state total)
- Farms: 1,346
- Most common crop: Common soybeans (184,037 acres, 29.0% of county farmland)
#24. Grand Forks
- Farmland: 647,456 acres (1.9% of state total)
- Farms: 1,603
- Most common crop: Common soybeans (156,945 acres, 24.2% of county farmland)
#23. Slope
- Farmland: 665,264 acres (1.9% of state total)
- Farms: 695
- Most common crop: Native grass (391,704 acres, 58.9% of county farmland)
#22. Walsh
- Farmland: 675,349 acres (2.0% of state total)
- Farms: 1,791
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (192,221 acres, 28.5% of county farmland)
#21. Hettinger
- Farmland: 684,067 acres (2.0% of state total)
- Farms: 1,463
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (235,175 acres, 34.4% of county farmland)
#20. Sioux
- Farmland: 686,910 acres (2.0% of state total)
- Farms: 647
- Most common crop: Native grass (518,149 acres, 75.4% of county farmland)
#19. Kidder
- Farmland: 689,531 acres (2.0% of state total)
- Farms: 1,113
- Most common crop: Native grass (243,629 acres, 35.3% of county farmland)
#18. Richland
- Farmland: 729,289 acres (2.1% of state total)
- Farms: 2,385
- Most common crop: Common soybeans (291,970 acres, 40.0% of county farmland)
#17. Stark
- Farmland: 756,986 acres (2.2% of state total)
- Farms: 1,666
- Most common crop: Native grass (232,992 acres, 30.8% of county farmland)
#16. Bottineau
- Farmland: 767,171 acres (2.2% of state total)
- Farms: 2,331
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (222,364 acres, 29.0% of county farmland)
#15. Bowman
- Farmland: 784,332 acres (2.3% of state total)
- Farms: 988
- Most common crop: Native grass (403,963 acres, 51.5% of county farmland)
#14. Cavalier
- Farmland: 785,567 acres (2.3% of state total)
- Farms: 2,002
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (278,280 acres, 35.4% of county farmland)
#13. Burleigh
- Farmland: 847,973 acres (2.5% of state total)
- Farms: 1,724
- Most common crop: Native grass (320,956 acres, 37.8% of county farmland)
#12. Emmons
- Farmland: 867,874 acres (2.5% of state total)
- Farms: 1,649
- Most common crop: Native grass (286,859 acres, 33.1% of county farmland)
#11. Dunn
- Farmland: 870,412 acres (2.5% of state total)
- Farms: 1,246
- Most common crop: Native grass (462,256 acres, 53.1% of county farmland)
#10. Cass
- Farmland: 897,082 acres (2.6% of state total)
- Farms: 2,257
- Most common crop: Common soybeans (407,564 acres, 45.4% of county farmland)
#9. Williams
- Farmland: 903,754 acres (2.6% of state total)
- Farms: 1,950
- Most common crop: Hard amber durum spring wheat (244,045 acres, 27.0% of county farmland)
#8. Mountrail
- Farmland: 933,521 acres (2.7% of state total)
- Farms: 2,045
- Most common crop: Native grass (324,842 acres, 34.8% of county farmland)
#7. Ward
- Farmland: 933,581 acres (2.7% of state total)
- Farms: 2,489
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (263,691 acres, 28.2% of county farmland)
#6. Grant
- Farmland: 967,326 acres (2.8% of state total)
- Farms: 1,263
- Most common crop: Native grass (476,682 acres, 49.3% of county farmland)
#5. Stutsman
- Farmland: 967,945 acres (2.8% of state total)
- Farms: 2,501
- Most common crop: Common soybeans (353,656 acres, 36.5% of county farmland)
#4. Morton
- Farmland: 983,508 acres (2.9% of state total)
- Farms: 1,634
- Most common crop: Native grass (491,274 acres, 50.0% of county farmland)
#3. McHenry
- Farmland: 986,473 acres (2.9% of state total)
- Farms: 2,081
- Most common crop: Native grass (297,083 acres, 30.1% of county farmland)
#2. McLean
- Farmland: 1,063,167 acres (3.1% of state total)
- Farms: 2,937
- Most common crop: Hard red spring wheat (252,543 acres, 23.8% of county farmland)
#1. McKenzie
- Farmland: 1,527,063 acres (4.4% of state total)
- Farms: 1,392
- Most common crop: Native grass (1,009,910 acres, 66.1% of county farmland)
