Agriculture provides almost everything we eat, use and wear on a daily basis. But too few people truly understand this contribution. This is particularly the case in our schools, where students may only be exposed to agriculture if they enroll in a related Career and Technical Education program.

By building awareness, the Agriculture Council of America is encouraging young people to consider career opportunities in agriculture.

Each American farmer feeds more than 165 people ... a dramatic increase from 25 people in the 1960s. Quite simply, American agriculture is doing more - and doing it better. As the world population soars, there is an even greater demand for the food and fiber produced in the United States.

 

No longer does entering the agriculture industry mean becoming a farmer. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 2.4 million people were employed in an agricultural-related job in 2017. Employment opportunities in agriculture are expected to grow nearly 5 percent between 2015 and 2020, according to Purdue University and the United States Department of Agriculture. Part of what's driving this growth are such industry changes as the vastly larger scale of current farming operations, the increasing complexity of agricultural technology, and an expanding web of support industries. Job seekers can find career options that didn't exist a decade ago.