The National Center for Farmworker Health developed a standardized methodology in collaboration with Dr. Susan Gabbard of JBS International for estimating the number of crop production and animal production workers in any county in the U.S. using the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Census of Agriculture. Please note that due to a delay in receiving data from the USDA, these estimates are based on the public data file for the 2017 Census of Agriculture. These estimates include both crop and animal production workers, but we are not able to separate the two sectors or provide the estimated number of adult and child dependents. Upon receiving the requested data file, we will update these estimates and provide crop production and animal production estimates separately, as well as the estimated number of dependents.
The maps below display the 2017 estimates of the number of crop and animal production workers by county (you can hover over a circle to view the estimates). These numbers are threshold numbers of workers only and could be affected by current weather conditions, labor policies, etc. You can request a spreadsheet with directly hired and contracted workers by county by contacting NCFH. NCFH also conducts a thorough process of expert interviews & data analysis for organizations that need to verify the numbers of farm workers in their area. Please see our content in Professional Services to learn more about this service.
