Are Small-Scale Farmers the Answer?

I was intrigued recently when I read that the US government has determined that there is not enough domestic production of fruits and vegetable to meet the minimum RDA (Recommended daily allowance) provided by their own dietary guidelines.

The recent emergence of local food production as a concern that is held by increasing numbers of the population got me to wondering just how much land would be required to meet the nutritional needs of the population. Or, in the words of the recent PBS program “America Revealed”: How many local farmers would it take to feed 300 million Americans every day? Unfortunately, no answer was given.

So I decided to sit down and do some math. I considered a very basic, plant-based diet – something that anyone with a small plot of land – whether urban or rural – could cultivate. I compared yields per acre with amounts required to meet daily nutritional needs. I did not consider such variables as crop losses due to pests, spoilage, or other factors. I used average dietary guidelines for calories (2200 calories per day), protein (51 grams per day), and the major vitamins and minerals.

My diet included apples, beans, broccoli, corn (fresh and dry), grapes for raisins, oats, onions, peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and soybeans for milk. I chose foods that could be easily stored or processed and therefore available throughout the year.

Using this plan, I found that one would require a bit more than a third of an acre per person to meet their daily nutritional needs. This amounts to 1.5 acres for a family of four.

In my scenario all nutritional requirements were met or exceeded except vitamins B6 (it came very close!) and B12.

So, can local, small-scale farmers meet these nutritional needs? To do so, a city of 10,000 inhabitants would require 3,700 acres of local production. Such acreage is not out of the realm of possibility in the American Midwest. Illinois farms alone cover more than 28 million acres. With a total population of around 13 million, only 4.8 million acres would be required to meet these nutritional demands in the state of Illinois.

Another way to look at it is to consider today’s small-scale farmer. The average acreage managed by the small-scale farmer has been estimated to range from less than 1 acre to 22 acres. With numbers like these, a town of 10,000 inhabitants would require 170 farms of 22 acres each.

On the national level, there are over 400 million acres in crop production in the United States. With a population of 311 million, only 115 million acres would be required to meet most of our nutritional demands.

In this analysis, numerous questions are raised. Among them: Are small-scale farms up to the task of providing significant food value to the population? Is quality farm land accessible to urban centers? If America can meet its nutritional needs and isn’t, why not? How economically feasible is to produce food crops on a small scale as compared to the large scale production model currently in place?

Regardless of the answers, it is satisfying to know that a person could meet their own nutritional needs on a small parcel of land – assuming no crop losses due to pests, agreeable weather throughout the growing season, and the time and energy to grow, harvest, and preserve this bountiful harvest.