Texas Feeds the World: How the Lone Star State Powers America's Food Supply

When America sits down to eat, there’s a good chance Texas put it on the table.

From the cotton in your shirt to the beef on your plate, the Lone Star State is an agricultural powerhouse, with an economic impact of $860.8 billion and 4.5 million jobs supported statewide.

Texas is home to 12.2 million head of cattle — 14% of the entire U.S. cattle population. That’s more beef cows than Missouri and Oklahoma combined. The state produces over 4 million calves annually, generating about $1 billion in beef exports each year. When American families buy quality beef, there’s a great chance it came from a Texas ranch.

That’s just the start; Texas also dominates cotton production. The state grows 30% of America’s cotton crop — 4.5 million bales across nearly six million acres. As the nation’s leading cotton exporter, Texas ships up to $2.1 billion worth of cotton worldwide every year. That’s 4.3 billion t-shirts, by the way.

With 230,662 farms and ranches covering 125.4 million acres, Texas has more farmland than most states have total land. Moreover, the diversity of crops is notable -- citrus groves in the Rio Grande Valley, wheat fields on the High Plains, rice along the coast, and timber operations in East Texas.

Texas also leads the nation in sheep, goats, mohair, horses, and hay. It ranks second in sorghum and wheat exports, and it’s the only state that grows all four types of peanuts. (Did you know there were four types of peanuts?) From pecans to dairy, Texas produces nearly everything America needs.

Texas has been the top exporting state for 19 consecutive years, with agricultural exports totaling $8.5 billion annually. One in seven working Texans is employed by agriculture — not just farmers and ranchers, but food processors, distributors, retailers, and restaurant workers. The industry generates $236.2 billion in wages and contributes $159.3 billion to state GDP.

From West Texas ranches to High Plains cotton fields, from the Rio Grande Valley to the Piney Woods — when the nation needs food, clothes, or even four types of peanuts — Texas delivers.