CropLife America Supports Feeding the Economy Report

The annual Feeding the Economy Report was released in conjunction with National Agriculture Day on Tuesday.  The report is a farm-to-fork economic impact study that estimates the direct and indirect economic contributions of the food and agriculture industries on jobs, wages, economic output, and business taxes.

The report indicates the U.S. food and agriculture directly support over 24 million jobs, which is roughly 15% of U.S. employment, and are responsible for more than $9.5 trillion of the country’s economic activity, about one-fifth of total U.S. output. 

Here is the Northwest, food and agriculture in Washington is responsible for more than 1.1 million jobs, $72.9 billion in wages, and $19 billion in exports.  In Idaho, agriculture is responsible for over 377,000 jobs, $23 billion in wages and $1.2 billion in exports.  And in Oregon, food and agriculture has created over 674,000 jobs, $39.5 billion in wages, and $2.4 billion in exports.

“The Feed the Economy Report spans the entire food chain and is an incredibly useful tool to share the economic contributions of the agricultural industry with lawmakers and American consumers,” says Alexandra Dunn, CLA President and CEO. “We are very proud of the role our members play in supporting a safe, affordable, and healthy food supply for American families and many people around the world.” 

CropLife America worked with 36 other food and agriculture groups to sponsor the report.  CLA describes themselves as a group committed to advocating for science-based policies that enable farmers to continue producing safe, affordable, and sustainable food. 

Click Here to check out the entire Feeding the Economy Report. In that report, you can look at the economic impact on the state, and even congressional district level.

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