The agriculture and food sector is impacted by broader local, national, and global economic forces and trends, which include urbanization, industrialization, and the growth of service sectors. These all contribute to a reduction of the agricultural sector. The resultant dislocation may cause loss of jobs, initiating a migration of farm workers to urban areas in search of new employment. Economic growth results in an increase in the relative size of other sectors in comparison to the agricultural sector, which may explain these trends in agriculture. The increased output and productivity in this sector are attributable to the use of technology and efficient production methods.

Major crops in Cochise County include corn, wheat, barley, oats, dry edible beans(excluding limas), sorghum, and forage land (alfalfa and hay). Livestock inventories consist primarily of cattle and calves (primarily beef cows), layers, sheep and lambs, and hogs and pigs.

Between 1997 and 2002, the most recent data available, the number of farms in Cochise County grew by 126, 15.3 percent, from 824 to 950. This was mostly the result of a deconsolidation of farmland, evidenced by the decline in total farm acreage from nearly 1.3 million acres in 1997 to less than 970,000 acres in 2002., despite the growth in the number of farms. The average farm size in the county declined from over 1,500 acres in 1997 to about 1,000 acres in 2002.

In looking at Cochise County's agricultural sector, a clear pattern emerges. Between 1997 and 2002, the county saw a shift from large, consolidated farms to smaller, more productive farms.