View source for Farmer

{{short description|Person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials}}
{{other uses|Farmer (disambiguation)|Grower (disambiguation)}} {{distinguish|framer}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{Sprotect|small=yes}}
{{Infobox Occupation
| name           = Farmer
| image          = Woman at work, Gujarat.jpg
| imagesize      = 250px
| caption        = Woman working in a rice field near [[Junagadh]], [[Gujarat]], India, in 2013
| official_names =
<!------------Details------------------->
| type               = [[Employment]]
| activity_sector    = [[Agriculture]]
| competencies       =
| formation          =
| employment_field   = [[Farm]], [[agribusiness]]
| related_occupation = [[Ranch]]er (U.S.), [[Pastoral farming|grazier]] (Australia) or stockman
}}
{{Rural society}}

A '''farmer''' is a person engaged in [[agriculture]], raising living organisms for food or raw materials.<ref>{{Harvnb|Dyer|2007|p=1}}: "The word 'farmer' was originally used to describe a tenant paying a leasehold rent (a farm), often for holding a lord's manorial [[demesne]]. The use of the word was eventually extended to mean any tenant or owner of a large holding, though when [[Gregory King]] estimated that there were 150,000 farmers in the late seventeenth century he evidently defined them by their tenures, as freeholders were counted separately."</ref> The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field [[crops]], [[orchard]]s, [[vineyard]]s, [[poultry]], or other [[livestock]]. A farmer might own the [[farmland]] or might work as a [[laborer]] on land owned by others. In most [[developed economies]], a "farmer" is usually a [[farm]] owner ([[landowner]]), while employees of the farm are known as ''[[farm workers]]'' (or farmhands). However, in other older definitions a farmer was a person who promotes or improves the growth of plants, land, or crops or raises animals (as livestock or fish) by labor and attention.

Over half a billion farmers are [[smallholder]]s, most of whom are in [[developing countries]] and who economically support almost two billion people.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Operating model|url=http://www.ifad.org/operations/food/farmer.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130505224355/http://www.ifad.org/operations/food/farmer.htm|archive-date=2013-05-05|access-date=2018-01-02|website=ifad.org|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=HLPE|publisher=Committee on World Food Security|location=Rome|date=June 2013|title=Investing in smallholder agriculture|url=http://www.fao.org/3/i2953e/i2953e.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501204718/http://www.fao.org/3/i2953e/i2953e.pdf|archive-date=1 May 2021|access-date=23 February 2021|website=fao.org}}</ref> Globally, women constitute more than 40% of agricultural employees.<ref>{{Cite web|title=SOFA 2017 - The State of Food and Agriculture|url=http://www.fao.org/state-of-food-agriculture/2017/en/|access-date=2021-03-08|website=www.fao.org}}</ref>

==History==
Farming dates back as far as the [[Neolithic]], being one of the defining characteristics of that era. By the [[Bronze Age]], the [[Sumer]]ians had an agriculture [[Division of labour|specialized labor force]] by 5000–4000 BCE, and heavily depended on irrigation to grow crops. They relied on three-person teams when harvesting in the spring.<ref>By the sweat of thy brow: Work in the Western world, Melvin Kranzberg, Joseph Gies, Putnam, 1975</ref> The [[Ancient Egyptian|Ancient Egypt]] farmers farmed and relied and irrigated their water from the [[Nile]].<ref>Nicholson (2000) p. 514</ref>

[[Animal husbandry]], the practice of rearing animals specifically for farming purposes, has existed for thousands of years. [[Dog]]s were domesticated in East Asia about 15,000 years ago. [[Goat]]s and [[sheep]] were domesticated around 8000 BCE in [[Asia]]. [[Domestic pig|Swine or pigs]] were domesticated by 7000 BCE in the [[Middle East]] and [[China]]. The earliest evidence of [[horse]] domestication dates to around 4000 BCE.<ref name=BoL>{{cite web |url=http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/ |title=Breeds of Livestock - Oklahoma State University |publisher=Ansi.okstate.edu |access-date=2011-12-10 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111224132431/http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/ |archive-date=2011-12-24 }}</ref>

===Advancements in technology===
[[File:FFA greenhouse training 120813-A-PO167-151.jpg|thumb|Afghani farmers learning about [[greenhouse]]s]]
In the [[United States|US]] of the 1930s, one farmer could produce only enough food to feed three other consumers. A modern farmer produces enough food to feed well over a hundred people. However, some authors consider this estimate to be flawed, as it does not take into account that farming requires energy and many other resources which have to be provided by additional workers, so that the ratio of people fed to farmers is actually smaller than 100 to 1.<ref name="Kirschenmann 2000">{{Harvnb|Kirschenmann|2000}}.</ref>

==Types==
[[File:Farmer, Nicaragua (rotated).jpg|thumb|A farmer in [[Nicaragua]]]]

More distinct terms are commonly used to denote farmers who raise specific [[domestication|domesticated]] animals. For example, those who raise grazing livestock, such as [[cattle]], [[domestic sheep|sheep]], [[goat]]s and [[horse]]s, are known as ''[[ranch]]ers'' (U.S.), ''[[wikt:grazier|graziers]]'' (Australia & UK) or simply ''stockmen''. Sheep, goat and cattle farmers might also be referred to, respectively, as ''[[shepherd]]s'', ''[[goatherd]]s'' and ''[[cowherd (disambiguation)#Worker|cowherd]]s''. The term ''[[dairy]] farmer'' is applied to those engaged primarily in milk production, whether from cattle, goats, sheep, or other milk producing animals. A ''poultry farmer'' is one who concentrates on raising [[chicken]]s, [[Domestic turkey|turkeys]], [[domestic duck|duck]]s or [[domestic goose|geese]], for either [[meat]], [[Egg (food)|egg]] or [[feather]] production, or commonly, all three. A person who raises a variety of vegetables for market may be called a ''truck farmer'' or ''market gardener''. ''Dirt farmer'' is an American colloquial term for a practical farmer, or one who farms his own land.<ref>Oxford English Dictionary</ref>

In developed nations, a farmer (as a profession) is usually defined as someone with an ownership interest in crops or livestock, and who provides land or management in their production. Those who provide only labor are most often called ''farmhands''. Alternatively, growers who manage farmland for an absentee landowner, sharing the harvest (or its profits) are known as ''[[sharecropper]]s'' or ''sharefarmers''. In the context of [[agribusiness]], a farmer is defined broadly, and thus many individuals not necessarily engaged in full-time farming can nonetheless legally qualify under [[agricultural policy]] for various [[subsidy|subsidies]], incentives, and [[tax deduction]]s.

===Techniques===
In the context of [[developing nation]]s or other pre-industrial cultures, most farmers practice a meager [[subsistence agriculture]]—a simple [[organic farming|organic-farming]] system employing [[crop rotation]], [[seed saving]], [[slash and burn]], or other techniques to maximize efficiency while meeting the needs of the household or community. One subsisting in this way may become labelled as a ''[[peasant]]'', often associated disparagingly with a "[[peasant mentality]]".<ref>
{{cite book
 | last1 = Bailey
 | first1 = Garrick
 | last2 = Peoples
 | first2 = James
 | title = Essentials of Cultural Anthropology
 | date = 11 January 2013
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=_vtFT42hjoQC
 | publisher = Cengage Learning
 | publication-date = 2013
 | pages = 121–122
 | isbn = 9781133603566
 | edition = 3
 | access-date = 2019-10-10
 | quote =  Peasants [...] are looked down on by higher classes ("he has a peasant mentality”).
}}
</ref>

In [[developed nation]]s, however, a person using such techniques on small patches of land might be called a [[gardener]] and be considered a [[hobbyist]]. Alternatively, one might be driven into such practices by [[poverty]] or, ironically—against the background of large-scale agribusiness—might become an organic farmer growing for discerning/faddish consumers in the [[local food]] market.

==Farming organizations==
[[File:American bee journal (1914) (17930911149).jpg|thumb|Meeting of the Eastern Illinois Beekeepers Association, 1914]]
Farmers are often members of local, regional, or national farmers' unions or agricultural producers' organizations and can exert significant political influence. The [[National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry|Grange]] movement in the United States was effective in advancing farmers' agendas, especially against railroad and agribusiness interests early in the 20th century. The [[FNSEA]] is very politically active in France, especially pertaining to [[genetically modified food]]. Agricultural producers, both small and large, are represented globally by the [[International Federation of Agricultural Producers]] (IFAP), representing over 600 million farmers through 120 national farmers' unions in 79 countries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ifap.org/en/about/aboutifap.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080807165914/http://www.ifap.org/en/about/aboutifap.html|url-status=dead|title=About the International Federation of Agricultural Producers|archive-date=August 7, 2008}}</ref>

===Youth farming organizations===
[[File:Farming is a public service shirt.jpg|thumb|'Farming is a public service' shirt]]

There are many organizations that are targeted at teaching young people how to farm and advancing the knowledge and benefits of [[sustainable agriculture]]. 
* [[4-H]] was started in 1902 and is a U.S.-based network that has approximately 6.5 million members, ages 5 to 21 years old, and is administered by the [[National Institute of Food and Agriculture]] of the [[United States Department of Agriculture]] (USDA). 
* The [[National FFA Organization]] (formerly known as Future Farmers of America) was founded in 1925 and is specifically focused on providing agriculture education for middle and high school students. 
* Rural Youth Europe is a non-governmental organization for European youths to create awareness of rural environmental and agriculture issues, it was started in 1957 and the headquarters is in [[Helsinki]], Finland. The group is active in 17 countries with over 500,000 participants.

==Income==
[[File:Annual Changes In Prices Received By Farmers, Top And Bottom Countries (2022).svg|thumb|Annual changes in prices received by farmers, top and bottom countries in 2022]]
Farmed products might be sold either to a [[Market (place)|market]], in a [[farmers' market]], or directly from a farm. In a subsistence economy, farm products might to some extent be either consumed by the farmer's family or pooled by the community.

== Occupational hazards ==
[[File:Illinois Agricultural Association record (microform) (January 1944- December 1949) (16054532294).jpg|thumb|"Death's Album of Careless Illinois Farm Folks", a 1949 cartoon listing 275 tractor-related accidents the previous year, and 183 livestock-related incidents]]

There are several occupational hazards for those in agriculture; farming is a particularly dangerous industry.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aginjury/|title = Agricultural Safety|date = December 15, 2014|publisher = NIOSH|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071028181205/http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aginjury/|archive-date = October 28, 2007}}</ref> Farmers can encounter and be stung or bitten by dangerous insects and other arthropods, including [[scorpion]]s, [[fire ants]], [[bee]]s, [[wasp]]s and [[hornet]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/insects/|title = Insects and Scorpions|date = February 24, 2012|publisher = NIOSH|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150903023922/http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/insects/|archive-date = September 3, 2015}}</ref> Farmers also work around heavy machinery which can kill or injure them. Farmers can also establish muscle and joints pains from repeated work.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Kumaraveloo|first1=K Sakthiaseelan|last2=Lunner Kolstrup|first2=Christina|date=2018-07-03|title=Agriculture and musculoskeletal disorders in low- and middle-income countries|journal=Journal of Agromedicine|language=en|volume=23|issue=3|pages=227–248|doi=10.1080/1059924x.2018.1458671|pmid=30047854|s2cid=51719997|issn=1059-924X}}</ref> Farmers also faces unique mental stressors, like the stress of uncertain crop yield based on weather events and uncertain economic stability due to market fluctuations. In the US, farmers are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide than the general US population.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schreifels |first=Jessica |date=2025-04-30 |title=Utah Farmers Signed Up for Federally Funded Therapy. Then the Money Stopped. |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/utah-farmers-therapy-mental-health-suicide-rates |access-date=2025-05-04 |website=ProPublica |language=en}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The word 'farmer' originally meant a person collecting taxes from tenants working a field owned by a landlord.<ref>{{cite web |title=Farmer {{!}} Definition of Farmer |url=https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/farmer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191226090347/https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/farmer |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 26, 2019 |website=Lexico Dictionaries {{!}} English |publisher=[[Oxford Dictionaries (website)|Oxford Dictionaries]] |language=en |quote=A person to whom the collection of taxes was contracted for a fee}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Lost Meanings of 'Farm' and 'Farmer' |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-origin-of-farm |website=www.merriam-webster.com |publisher=[[Merriam–Webster's Dictionary of English Usage]] |language=en}}</ref> The word changed to refer to the person farming the field.<!--Dyer-->
Previous names for a farmer were [[churl]] and husbandman.<ref>{{cite web |title=farmer {{!}} Origin and meaning of farmer by Online Etymology Dictionary |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/farmer |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}}</ref>

== Gallery ==

<gallery mode=packed>
File:NRCSCT07047 - Connecticut (716026)(NRCS Photo Gallery).tif|American [[dairy farmer]]
File:Swiss hay farmer in Versam.jpg|Swiss [[hay]] farmer
File:Tanzanian tea farmers.jpg|Tanzanian [[tea]] farmers
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Agriculture and Agronomy}}
{{div col|colwidth=18em}}
* [[Agrarian society]]
* [[Agrarianism]]
* [[Agriculture]]
* [[Agribusiness]]
* [[Agroecology]]
* [[Corporate farming]]
* [[Family farm]]
* [[Farmers' market]]
* [[Farmworker]]
* [[Gardening]]
* [[Gentleman farmer]]
* [[Landed gentry]]
* [[Organic farming]]
* [[Pastoralism]]
* [[Peasant]]
* [[Rural American history]]
* [[Sustainable agriculture]]
{{div col end}}

== References ==
;Notes
{{Reflist}}

;Bibliography
{{Refbegin}}
*{{Cite journal
 |last= Dyer |first= Christopher |author-link= Christopher Dyer |year= 2007
 |title= A suffolk farmer in the fifteenth century
 |journal= [[Agricultural History Review]] |volume= 55 |issue= 1 |pages= 1–22
 |jstor= 40276126 }}
*{{Cite journal
 |last=Kirschenmann 
 |first=Frederick 
 |author-link = Fred Kirschenmann
 |year=2000 
 |title=How many farmers will we need? 
 |url=http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/sites/default/files/ll/LeopoldLetter20004.pdf 
 |journal=[[Iowa State University|Leopold Letter]] 
 |volume=12 
 |issue=4 
 |pages=3–4 
 |url-status=dead 
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502110046/http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/sites/default/files/ll/LeopoldLetter20004.pdf 
 |archive-date=2012-05-02 
}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Farmers}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline}}
{{Agriculture footer}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Agricultural occupations]]
[[Category:Farmers| ]]