Arkansas Century Farm program adds 46 farms statewide

Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture Wes Ward have inducted 46 Arkansas farms into the Arkansas Century Farm Program.

The Arkansas Century Farm program recognizes Arkansas farms of 10 acres or more owned by the same family for at least 100 years. The Arkansas Department of Agriculture began the Century Farm program in 2012 to highlight the contributions of these families to the agriculture industry as well as their overall contributions to the state.

Agriculture is Arkansas’ largest industry, contributing more than $21 billion to the state’s economy annually and providing one in every six jobs in the state. Arkansas consistently ranks in the top 25 nationally in the production of more than 15 agricultural commodities.

“How reassuring that we are adding more families to the Arkansas Century Farm Program,” Hutchinson said. “Families who have held on to their farms for generations lend a sense of continuity in a time of frequent change. These families pass down more than the knowledge of farming. They are handing down love of family and an ethic of hard work as well as a love for the land.”

Including the 2019 inductees, 464 farms are currently recognized as Arkansas Century Farms.

The 46 newly inducted Century Farms are located in the following 30 counties: Arkansas, Benton, Clay, Conway, Drew, Faulkner, Franklin, Fulton, Greene, Howard, Independence, Izard, Lawrence, Lincoln, Little River, Logan, Lonoke, Mississippi, Monroe, Nevada, Poinsett, Polk, Prairie, Scott, Searcy, Sebastian, Sharp, Stone, Union, and Woodruff.

Applications for the 2020 Century Farm Inductees will open in February.