Farm profits contribute to strong growth in fourth quarter of 2014

A very profitable farm sector in the fourth quarter of 2014 helped give the Kansas faster economic growth than the nation as a whole, according to the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Gross domestic product in Kansas grew at a rate of 3.4 percent in the quarter, compared to 2 percent for the nation. Nearly half of the all the growth in economic activity in the state came from farmers and ranchers. The second strongest sector was non-durable manufacturing.

Over all four quarters of 2014, Kansas GDP grew slower than the nation, 1.8 percent compared to 2.2 percent.

But that is unlikely to be repeated this year. Last year was a very good year for Kansas farmers with high crop prices most of the year and record cattle prices. This year has seen much lower crop prices, and up-and-down cattle prices.

This story was originally published September 2, 2015 at 10:57 AM with the headline "Farm profits contribute to strong growth in fourth quarter of 2014."