Farming is getting progressively more efficient, but many don’t realize the impact the $70.4 billion Alabama industry has on the state and the nation, according to ALFA Insurance President Jimmy Parnell.

Parnell spoke about a myriad of issues in the Alabama farming industry to a packed house at the Central Alabama Farmers Co-op Tuesday during the Buttonhole Breakfast.

“We have gotten to a point where there is a huge disconnect between the farm and the food,” he said. “The average kid has no connection to where that food came from. When I was in grammar school, I think everyone in my grade was either on a farm or their grandparents were farmers, but if you go to the average first grade today and talk to those kids, I’ll bet you most of those kids are five generations removed from a farm.”

Parnell said about 1 percent of the population is a farmer or directly connecting to the farming industry. Though the percentage may seem small, Parnell said farming still contributes $70.4 billion annually to Alabama’s economy. Timber production and processing make up the largest single category at $21.4 billion.

The small percentage continues to keep up with demand by increasing efficiency, he said.

“In 1964, the average farmer in the United States fed 25 people,” he said. “This year, the average farmer feeds 155 people.”

Parnell also said he was disappointed Congress hadn’t ratified a farm bill yet, but he wasn’t the only one. In a post-breakfast panel of farmers, Randall Beers, a local row-crop farmer, said a farm bill needs to be passed by the end of the year or farmers could suffer.

Beers said one potential problem could come with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s loan program. The USDA offers loans to farmers, if the farmer meets certain conditions. If no farm bill is passed, farmers may not be able to receive those loans.

“Farming is a big, especially around here,” Beers said. “We need to get a farm bill passed.”

Casual diners weren’t the only ones attending the event sponsored by the Selma-Dallas County Chamber of Commerce and the Co-Op.

The meal coincided with Leadership Selma-Dallas County Class XX’s monthly meeting, which allowed class members the chance listen to the panel as part of the program’s Agricultural Industry Day.

The Buttonhole Breakfast is also part of the 2013 Farm-City Week, a week dedicated to educating everyday people about the interdependence between cities and farms, Dallas County Auburn Extension agent Callie Nelson said.