Report Shows Recession's Impact on Rural America

"Rural America at a Glance: 2009 Edition" is an update of an annual series. The report, which was published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service, deals with the recession's effects on rural America. Throughout much of 2008, its effects were mitigated in non-metro areas by high commodity prices, but as the recession deepened, prices fell. Both non-metro and metro areas experienced rising unemployment as manufacturing and other major employment sectors contracted, and they were similarly affected by the mortgage foreclosure crisis.

Even before the current recession, however, non-metro poverty rates had risen – going against usual trends – in the growth years after the 2001 recession. Since 2001, the non-metro poverty rate has exceeded the national poverty rate. The non-metro population continued to grow in 2007 and 2008, but at less than half the rate of the metro population. Non-metro growth is largely due to a rise in births, offsetting a decline in net migration from metro to non-metro areas.

To view the USDA's report, click here.

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