Special offer

New Sub-division or Food on Your Table

By
Real Estate Agent with Austin Texas Homes, LLC 548155

New Sub-division or Food on Your Table

Does it seem every year we have to drive a little farther out to find some real farmland?  Right here in my own area I am seeing several different areas of farm land that have been here for generations, being developed for new sub-divisions.  I ask myself….what are we going to do for food when developers buy up all the farmland?  So, I did a little research….

Farmland to SubdivisionAre we needlessly wasting one of the world's most important resources?  Less than one-fifth of U.S. land is high quality, and we are losing this finest land to development at an accelerating rate. Farmland means much more than food. Well-managed farmland shelters wildlife, supplies scenic open space and helps filter impurities from our air and water. These working lands keep our taxes down and maintain the legacy of our agricultural heritage. It makes no sense to develop our best farmland. Instead, we have a responsibility to protect this most valuable resource for future generations.

Do you realize that 400 acres of pasture and cropland might bring $4,000 an acre if sold to a farmer for farming, but it would fetch at least two or three times that if sold to a developer for housing? Developers can make more money selling an acre of housing once than farmers can sell an acre of corn over their lifetimes.  If you’re a farmer, ready to retire and you face a choice between handing it down, or selling your only asset — your farm — for $2 million or $6 million, what would you do?  And developers are jumping on it!

In America, we've been losing more than an acre of farmland per minute.  In just five years, between 2002 and 2007, 4,080,300 acres of agricultural land were converted to developed uses—an area nearly the size of Massachusetts.  During a 25-year span up to 2007, every state lost prime farmland. Our own state of Texas had the biggest loss of 1.5 million acres.

Wasteful land use is the problem, not growth itself.  Wasteful land use puts America's valuable fertile productive farmland at risk. From 1982 to 2007, the U.S. population grew by 30 percent. During the same time period, developed land increased 57 percent.   91% of our fruit and 78% of our vegetables are produced in urban-influenced areas.   Agricultural land should provide our nation with an unparalleled abundance of food. 

Our food is increasingly in the path of development.   

 

Sherry Scales, REALTOR®

CLHMS, GRI, SRES, ABR designations to serve you better.

Austin Texas Homes, LLC

512.925.8928 Cell

sherry@sherryscales.com

Comments (4)

Pete Xavier
Investments to Luxury - Pacific Palisades, CA
Outstanding Agent Referrals-Nationwide

I guess we love our subdivisions more and somehow (in most people's mind) the food would make it's way to our mouths...where there's a will there's a way.

Jan 23, 2015 11:53 AM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

Government regulations are putting family farmers out of business so they have to sell their land.  Sad.

Jan 23, 2015 12:00 PM
Ricki Eichler McCallum
CastNet Realty - Corpus Christi, TX
Broker,GRI,ABR, e-Pro, TAHS

HI Sherry,  I so agree with you about this.  It is scary to think that the mighty dollar means more to some than our very survival.  Look at what  a few are doing around the world to destroy our planet.  How much more can the planet take before we are in a serious situation with hunger and disease?  Not a pretty thing to think about but a preventable one if everyone would get on board at saving our world.

Jan 25, 2015 01:51 AM
Potranco Realty
Potranco Realty - San Antonio, TX
"Sold with Potranco Realty"

I love this blog and why wasn't it featured? I just don't understand the feature fairies..... What a perspective of farm land I've not given much thought to but you made me stop and think. Hmm!

I'm all for expanding but it might not be in the best interest of the community when we no longer have farm land around. Being in the business we see this happening first hand.

Feb 04, 2015 08:42 PM