At Absorbine®, we have been talking a lot lately about hobby farms. Hobby farms – also known as “lifestyle” or “retirement” farms, are on the rise in the U.S. Many small-scale farmers across the country are raising horses, cattle, livestock, and other animals, in addition to growing their own fruits and vegetables. In fact, Absorbine’s own Heather Bean is a proud hobby farmer, raising pigs, chickens, and bees at her home in Massachusetts. “I started my small hobby farm because its part of my family heritage that I wanted to carry on. It’s also a way to show our kids the satisfaction of producing our own food and the value of hard work,” says Heather.

Want to learn more about hobby farms? Here are five fast facts about hobby farms in the United States:

• 36% of all farms in the U.S. are considered “hobby farms” – with an additional 21% of farms considered “retirement farms”
• A hobby farm is classified as less than 50 acres; spreads of 50 to 100 acres are considered small-scale farms
• More than 300,000 new farms have started in the U.S. since 2002
• Rural homeowners and small-scale farmers are a powerful consumer group – there are an estimated 27 million rural property owners in the U.S., with an estimated $32 billion in spending power
• The most common animals owned by hobby farmers are beef and dairy cattle, sheep, goats, and alpacas – but we have heard from our Facebook fans that they raise everything from peacocks to camels to chickens!

At Absorbine®, we value the hobby and small-scale farmer, and are proud to introduce new products to help this community care for the animals they love. Our Flys-X® Ready to Use Insecticide for Livestock is a water-based, botanical formula that provides an affordable and effective fly control solution for the livestock owner. It is approved for use on cattle, horse, ponies, foals, and dogs.

Looking forward, we plan to continue to use our 121 years of animal care knowledge to develop and produce innovative, high-quality products for the hobby farmer.