Fun Facts

Grains can be categorized into food grains (for people) and feed grains (for cattle). Cattle eat feed grains like field corn and grain sorghum. An average of 4 ½ pounds of grain is used to produce a...

Cotton can be found in much more than clothes and other fabrics! Cotton by-products can be used to make paper currency, cosmetics and feed for dairy cattle and livestock.

In addition to meat, pigs provide us with lots of other products, including valves for human heart surgery, suede for shoes and clothing, and gelatin for many food and non-food uses.

In Kansas alone, pig farmers raised over 3.2 million pigs in 2015, producing over 600 million pounds of pork!

A common ingredient in fertilizer is phosphate, which comes from ancient sea life. Phosphate is one of many natural ingredients used to keep soil — and plants! — healthy.

The majority of oil used for cooking in our country is U.S.-grown 100% soybean oil!

Farmers in Kansas grow more than 650 million bushels of corn each year. 

There are more than 29 cuts of beef that meet government guidelines for lean, including tenderloin, T-bone steak and extra lean ground beef.

One bale of cotton can make 1,256 pillowcases.

A bushel of soybeans weighs 60 pounds and produces 11 pounds of oil and 48 pounds of soybean meal.

Did you know that Americans consume about 132 pounds of wheat flour per person each year?

Mexico and Japan are our top international corn buyers. They buy 50 percent of U.S. corn exports.

About two-thirds of the Kansas corn crop is used in-state as livestock feed or in food production. 

There are 7 different breeds of dairy cattle. Farmers choose their breeds based on milk production, size and even personality.

Pig farmers have reduced greenhouse gas emissions on pig farms by 35% per pound of pork by changing how crops are raised, how pigs are fed, and how nutrients are recycled.

One bushel of corn makes 2.8 gallons of ethanol.

There are more than 300 licensed dairy herds in Kansas with about 143,000 cows total. In 2015 cows produced about 365 million gallons of milk, making Kansas the 16th largest milk producing state.

Milk is one of the best sources of calcium. Our bodies absorb 28 percent of the calcium found in milk, but as little as 5 percent of the calcium found in other foods like spinach.

One Kansas farmer raises enough food to feed about 155 people!

From farm to processor to distribution and retail, dairy creates jobs that support the economic well-being of Kansans. The dairy industry contributes $592 million annually to the Kansas economy and...

Grain sorghum is one of the oldest known grains. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Africa and India.