By TIM ALEXANDER
Illinois Correspondent WASHINGTON, D.C. — High-speed Internet access methods such as DSL, cable, wireless and satellite are available to more rural dwellers each year, with the proportion of DSL users doubling in 2007, according to a recent USDA study.
DSL is the preferred method of access for 27 percent of Internet users in the farm sector, compared with the 2005 level of 13 percent. Seven percent of United States farms with Internet access utilize cable, satellite and wireless as their primary access, with satellite and wireless access at virtually double that of 2005 levels.
The most common form of Internet access for the farm sector remained dial-up, with 47 percent of farmers reporting access. As DSL and other high-speed access methods have become more available to the rural sector, however, dial-up use has fallen from 69 percent in 2005, the study revealed. Total U.S. farms with some sort of Internet access increased since 2005, from 51-55 percent.
Thirty-five percent of U.S. farms report some form of computer use in association with their operations, up 3 percent.
Eighty percent of farms reporting sales and government payments of $250,000 or more have access to a computer, 78 percent own or lease a computer, 66 percent use a computer for farm-related business and 75 percent have Internet access. The figures for farms reporting between $100,000-$249,000 are slightly lower, according to the report, and even lower for farms reporting between $10,000-$99,999 in earnings and payments.
Sixty-four percent of crop farms reported having access to a computer in 2007, with 37 percent using them for business, up four and three percent from 2005, respectively. Fifty-six percent of crop farms with computer access reported Internet access, compared to 52 percent in 2005.
For livestock farms, 62 percent have computers and 55 percent reported Internet access, with Internet use for farm business up three points to 33 percent from 2005.
Charts published by USDA in conjunction with the study reflect a consistent rise in the percentage of farms with computer access, Internet access and the number of farms that use the Internet for business purposes, since 1997. Farmers in the southern regions of the United States are the least likely to own and use computers and the Internet for farm operations, the charts reveal.
In Illinois, 46 percent of farmers still have dial-up Internet access, followed by 20 percent DSL, 17 percent wireless and 9 percent satellite, according to the Illinois Farm Bureau. The number of Illinois farmers using DSL hookups rose by 46 percent, while the numbers for wireless and satellite were triple that of 2005.
This farm news was published in the Aug. 22, 2007 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee. |
