MSU Extension Product Center

Introduction

This brief analysis considers land use in the State of Michigan. The primary focus is on farmland and the different crops that are supported on that land. The amount of farmland has been slowly declining over time. Currently, about 9.7 million acres in this state are devoted to farming. This is approximately 26.6 percent of the state’s land mass. 

Most of the farmland is used for row crop production. Corn and soybeans are the dominant crops, followed by forage crops and wheat. However, Michigan is also a major vegetable, fruit, horticulture, and berry producer.

The state and federal governments are major landowners. Most of the land owned by the state and federal government is forested.

Non-farmland

Most of the land in the state is forested. Approximately 20 million acres are forestland (Cook), which is approximately 55.0 percent of the state’s total land mass. Slightly less than 6.7 million acres of land is used for other uses including roads, urban areas, and towns. 

Michigan is unique in that it has the highest level of federal land ownership east of the Mississippi. The federal government owns 3.6 million acres. This is about 10 percent of the land in the state.  Almost 80 percent of the federally owned land is the possessed by the U.S. Forest Service, and another 17.4 percent is owned by the National Park Service (stacker.com). The National Forests are Hiawatha, Ottawa, and Marquette National Forests in the Upper Peninsula, and the Huron and Manistee National Forests located in the Northern Lower Peninsula. There are five National Parks, of which the most famous are Isle Royal, Pictured Rocks, and Sleeping Bear Dunes.

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is also a major landowner. The DNR owns 4.6 million acres of land which is about 12.7 percent of the state’s total landmass. Most of the land is state forests, parks, recreation areas, water access sites, and wildlife areas such as hunting land (DNR). Together the state and Federal Government own more than 20 percent of the land in the state. Some, if not most of the land owned by the state and federal government is not well suited to farming.

Farmland

According to the Michigan Field Office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, approximately 9.7 million acres of land in the state is used for farming. Table 1 shows the utilization of farmland in 2017, this data comes from the 2017 Census of Agriculture. The total amount of land in Table 1 is considerably less than 9.7 million acres.  This is likely due to several factors. Not all farmers submit their census forms, agricultural buildings are not included, and land used for pasture may not be captured.

Despite these shortcomings, table 1 does reveal several points. The vast majority of the land is used for row crop production. Corn and soybeans are the dominant crops. Some years corn is the number one crop, and some years soybeans is the number one crop. In terms of acreage forage crops ranked third at slightly more than 1 million acres. Wheat is the fourth largest crop in terms of acreage.

While other crops use far less acreage on a per acre basis they generate higher revenues. A good example of this is the land used for floriculture, greenhouses, and nurseries. While only 11,671 acres were devoted to these products in 2017, the wholesale value of these products was close to $663 million in 2021 according to the Michigan Agricultural Field Office.

Vegetable production accounted for 165,337 acres in 2017. Of this amount, more than 50,000 acres were devoted to potato production and more than 34,000 acres were devoted to cucumber production, both for the fresh market and for pickles. Foreign competition and labor shortages may reduce the number of acres devoted to vegetable production in the future. Some vegetable producers face intense competition from foreign producers, and the lack of labor is an issue for farmers that rely on seasonal labor.

Fruit and nut production utilized 98,210 acres in 2017. Most acres are devoted to apple and cherry production. Total land in cherry orchards was in excess of 40,000 acres and apple production used more than 38,000 acres. Grape production accounted for an additional 13,000 acres. As is the case with vegetable production some fruit production is threatened by foreign competition. Increased population pressures in West Michigan and the Northwest Lower Peninsula may also reduce fruit acreage in the future.

Total acreage devoted to berry production was 25,006 acres in 2017. Blueberries were the dominant crop accounting for more than 22,000 acres. Michigan is one the largest producers of blueberries in the U.S. An additional 36,986 acres were used to produce Christmas trees in the state.

Summary

Michigan farmland is used to produce a wide range of agricultural commodities. More than 25 percent of the land in Michigan is farmland. Most of the land in Michigan is forestland. The federal and state government are major landowners; most of the government owned land is forested. The vast majority of farmland is used to produce field crops, primarily corn, soybeans, forages, and wheat. 

Michigan is also a major producer of vegetables especially cucumbers and potatoes, fruits particularly cherries and apples, and blueberries. Michigan is also an important producer of ornamental horticulture crops and Christmas trees.

The amount of land devoted to farmland appears to be declining slightly over time. This is likely due to two primary reasons, the first is land some crops are facing labor shortages and competition from foreign countries that restrict profitability. This is an issue for some fruits and vegetables. The second is population pressure in certain parts of the state. This is especially true for West Michigan in areas such as Allegan and Ottawa counties, and the northwest Lower Peninsula. Despite these concerns, most of the farmland in the state is not under threat.

References

Cook, B. (2019).  “Facing the Facts,”  Michigan State University Extension.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), (n.d.).  Land Exchanges and Sales Guide:  A Guide to Property Transactions with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Stacker.com (n.d.).  https://stacker.com/michigan/see-how-much-land-michigan-owned-federal-government.