In 1995, Missouri agriculture produced $4.4 billion in sales from 105,000 farms on 28.5 million acres or 65 percent of the total land area, making agriculture a major industry and the predominate land use in the state. Transportation infrastructure is an essential requirement for the state's agricultural industry. Highways, railroads, and waterways serve to transport seed, fertilizer, livestock, and equipment from agribusiness to farms where crops are planted and livestock are raised. Upon harvest, farm produce travels to local agribusiness where they are transported by truck, rail, or barge to processors in the United States and abroad. In 1995, Missouri farms produced $1.26 billion of sales to the export market. Missouri is blessed with an abundance of productive soils. However, only some soils are suitable for farming, while other less productive soils grow grass for livestock or trees for lumber. Land containing the best soils is called "prime" farmland. Prime farmland is land that has the best combination of physical and chemical characteristics for producing food, feed, forage, fiber, and oilseed crops. In studying proposed transportation projects, the Missouri Department of Transportation coordinates with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture, to evaluate soils for farmland impact. When prime farmlands are present, MoDOT considers measures that would lessen that impact. That could be a different location or an alternative design that would affect fewer acres. With the abundance of farms and prime farmland in Missouri, it is rarely possible to avoid all impacts. In the design of a new roadway, however, impacts to existing farms are considered by designers and measures to avoid or minimize impacts are taken when safety, need, and cost efficiency can be maintained. For more information on farmland protection, visit the American Farmland Trust web site.