OCR Text |
Show American Farmer Big User of Electricity A startling ten-year rise in farm electrification has made the American Amer-ican farmer one of the nation's biggest users of electric power. The farmer is now receiving more than twice as much farm high-line service as in 1940. Moreover, More-over, the amount of electricity used by farmers has increased nearly five times, and the average use per farmer has more than doubled. American farms are now using in excess of 15 billion kilowatt hours of electricity a year, while in 1940 they consumed only 3 billion. In addition, the number of farms serviced by electric power about two million in 1940 has leaped to approximately five million. The average kilowatt hours of power used per farm, exclusive ex-clusive of irrigation projects in the West, has increased from about 1000 ten years ago to 2300 today. The farmer is just beginning on the road toward complete rural electrification. Many new electric devices will be aiding the farmer in his struggle for higher output. Things like automatic poultry feeders, crop-drying equipment, automatic barn cleaners, silo un-loaders, un-loaders, wagon unloaders, and feed handling equipment are all a part of the American farmer's future. |