Farmer Facts for Kids

A farmer is a person who grows crops and raises animals. These crops and animals are used for food or other important things. Being a farmer has been a common job for people for a very long time. It goes all the way back to the start of human civilization.

What Farmers Do
History of Farming
- How Technology Helps Farmers
Different Kinds of Farmers
Related pages
Images for kids
See also

What Farmers Do

A farmer working in a field.

The word farmer usually means someone who has a field, an orchard, or a garden. This is where they grow food. After the food is harvested, it is either eaten or sold. Farmers also grow raw materials for different industries.

Here are some examples of raw materials farmers grow:

Grains for making drinks.
Animal skins (hides) for making leather.
Corn for plastics or fuel.
Wool or cotton for making yarn and cloth.

Some farmers also raise animals. These animals provide meat, milk, eggs, or other useful products.

History of Farming

Farming started a very long time ago. It began in the Neolithic era, which was the New Stone Age. By the Bronze Age, around 5000–4000 BCE, people in Sumer had special jobs for farming. They used irrigation to water their crops. This means they moved water from rivers to their fields. Farmers in Ancient Egypt also used irrigation from the Nile River.

Raising animals for farming, called Animal husbandry, has also been around for thousands of years.

Dogs were first tamed in East Asia about 15,000 years ago.
Goats and sheep were tamed around 8000 BCE in Asia.
Pigs were tamed by 7000 BCE in the Middle East and China.
The first evidence of taming horses is from around 4000 BCE.

How Technology Helps Farmers

A large machine called a combine harvester on a farm in England.

Farming has changed a lot with new technology. In the 1930s, one farmer in the U.S. could grow enough food for themselves and only three other people. Today, one farmer can grow enough food for over a hundred people! This is thanks to new machines and methods. However, it's important to remember that farming still needs a lot of energy and other resources. Many other workers help provide these things.

Different Kinds of Farmers

An American dairy farmer.

There are many different types of farmers. Often, their name tells you what kind of animals or crops they focus on.

People who raise grazing animals like cattle, sheep, goats, and horses are often called ranchers. In other places, they might be called graziers or stockmen.
Farmers who raise sheep are called shepherds.
Those who raise goats are goatherds.
People who raise cows are cowherds.
A dairy farmer focuses on producing milk. This milk can come from cows, goats, or sheep.
A poultry farmer raises chickens, turkeys, ducks, or geese. They might raise them for meat, eggs, or feathers.
Someone who grows many different vegetables to sell at a market might be called a truck farmer or market gardener.
The term dirt farmer is an old American way to describe a farmer who works their own land.

In many modern countries, a farmer is usually someone who owns the crops or animals. They also provide the land or manage the farm. People who only provide labor are usually called farmhands. Sometimes, growers manage land for an owner and share the harvest. These people are known as sharecroppers.