When it comes to agricultural receipts, size does not matter.
Nebraska and Iowa rank in the top
four in the U.S. in agricultural receipts
for all commodities along with
California and Texas, yet Nebraska
and Iowa are not in the top 10 when it
comes to total area (see Table 1).
A major commodity for agricultural
receipts is crop production. In
Nebraska, three of the top five
agricultural commodities are crops:
corn, soybeans and wheat. These are
also Nebraska’s main exported crops.
It is estimated that in Nebraska every
dollar in agricultural exports generates
$1.34 in economic activity. So
Nebraska’s $5–6 billion in agricultural
crop exports roughly translates to $7–8
billion in additional economic activity,
which is approximately 35 percent of
all agricultural cash receipts. These
facts and figures may not be surprising
to most Nebraskans; however, many
citizens overlook the contributions of
aerial applicators and the 80 public-
use airports that support applicator
activity to make the state a national
leader in agriculture. Nebraska is also
Table 1: Top-Producing Ag States by Revenue
State CA IA NE TX
U.S. Rank by Ag Cash Receipts 1 2 3 4
All Agriculture Cash Receipts (in billions) $46 $31 $23 $22
U.S. Rank by Size 3 26 16 2
Size, Square Miles 163,696 56,272 77,421 268,272
Table 2: Aerial Applicators and Public-Use Airports in Top-Producing Ag States
State NE IA CA TX
Public-UseAirports 80 116 243 297
Aerial Applicators Registered with State’s Ag Dept. 436 333 458 443
By Russ Gasper, Nebraska Department of Aeronautics
AG ECONOMICS
Agriculture, Aerial
Applicators and
Airports While small in their own right, America’s aerial applicators and public-use airports contribute much to agriculture
