ABSTRACT
In recent years, the survival of farm operators, particularly small farms, 1 has been a topic of much discussion. Juxtaposed against and intricately related to this current crisis in agriculture is the trend that the number of farms is decreasing while farm size is increasing. Specifically, the number of farms declined 23 and 39 percent in South and North Carolina, respectively from 1969 to 1982. The respective declines for small farm operations were 31 and 49 percent. In contrast, the average size of all farms in the South has increased by 21 percent and 33 percent in North Carolina (U.S. Bureau of Census, 1969, 1982). These statistics reflect the financial pressures that have forced many owners of small and medium-sized farms to declare bankruptcy, expand their operations to increase net returns, or seek off-farm employment. The percentage of total farm income earned from off-farm sources has increased for all farm sizes in all areas of the country.
