Center for Agriculture and the Economy
Leveraging expertise from the Kansas City Fed, the Center provides timely analysis of industry developments and conducts ongoing research on the agricultural economy.
Unemployment Remains Low in Rural Farm Counties
July 3, 2026
By Ty Kreitman
Despite ongoing challenges in the crop sector and tighter farm financial conditions, unemployment in rural counties most highly concentrated in farming has remained low. The rate of unemployment in farm-concentrated counties (blue line) and all other rural counties (green line) diverged in the early 2000s and that trend has persisted. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in farming counties was 3.8% as of May 2026, which was slightly higher than the record lows reached in 2022 but notably lower than other areas of the U.S. The contrast likely reflects differences in factors like age demographics, population growth, industry concentrations and labor market participation and has implications for labor availability in the agricultural sector and prospects for off-farm employment.
Notes: The rural and urban county distinction is based on USDA Rural-Urban Continuum Codes for metro and non-metro counties and the farm concentration distinction is based on the high farming-concentration USDA Economic Typology Code. The rural and urban classifications are based on population and connection to broader labor-market areas. Urban counties (metro) are those that have one or urban area with a population of 50,000 or more people and outlying counties that are economically tied to an urban county as measured by labor-force commuting. Rural counties (non-metro) have cities with populations of 20,000 or less and are not economically tied to an urban county. Farm concentrated rural counties have at least 20 percent of the county annual average labor and proprietors’ earnings derived from farming or at least 17 percent of the annual average number of jobs in the county derived from farming.
Source: BLS, USDA, and Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City Staff Calculations.
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The Kansas City Fed's Continuing Commitment to Agriculture
Through regular surveys, analysis and connections across the industry, the Kansas City Fed has had a longstanding focus on U.S. and global agriculture. Leveraging this expertise, the Center for Agriculture and the Economy serves as a resource within the Federal Reserve System by providing timely analysis of industry developments and conducting ongoing research on the agricultural economy. The Kansas City Fed is committed to understanding developments in the agricultural economy and gathering perspectives from rural America in order to include them in discussions on the national economy.
The Kansas City Fed's Ag Connection
Agriculture is central to the Kansas City Fed’s 10th District’s economy, from farm production and food manufacturing to agricultural banking and finance. Through its regular surveys, analysis and connections across the industry, the Kansas City Fed has had a longstanding focus on the U.S. and global agricultural economy. At the same time, connecting with stakeholders and ag industry professionals through events, round tables and conversations is critical to the Bank’s work.