Each year Illinois produces enough corn to fill a train that would stretch from London to New York and back again.Thanks to its rich soil and temperate climate, the state is one of the largest contributors to America’s Midwest agricultural belt, sometimes referred to as the ‘breadbasket of the world’. Illinois farms account for more than $13 billion in farm sales every year, making it the second most agriculturally lucrative American state after Iowa.Nearly 80 percent of the state is farmland, with more than 76,000 farms covering an area four times the size of Belgium. The region is so well suited to agriculture because of its hot summers that help plants grow and its cold winters that allow the soil to replenish itself.The fertile soil supports high levels of crop growth and quality, as well as sustaining excellent grazing land for livestock.
Soybeans, corn and pork are the state’s main products, amounting to 15 percent of the nation’s total for these commodities.Prominent small-scale farm owners in Illinois are the Amish, a religious group known for their humble living and pastoral lifestyle, who farm using more traditional techniques.The town of Arthur in Illinois and its surrounding farmland is home to more than 4,000 Amish residents, who own approximately 250 km² of farms around the town.While Amish farms only produce enough to sustain the community, other commercial farms have the potential to grow vast quantities of crops for food and other uses.For example, soybeans are used to make biofuel, while corn is used to make ethanol, a component of gasoline.Illinois farms produce more corn ethanol than any other state: 564 million gallons annually, enough to power 48 million cars for a year.