It's good news that after decades of decline in the number of farms in Iowa, the latest USDA statistics show an unexpected gain -- most of it coming from small farms. This says good, if fairly unsurprising, things about marginal changes in the food chain. And as you'd expect, the small farms are more diverse in crop choices (which is to say, they grow food, rather than just industrial corn and soybeans), run by younger farmers, and in particular, run by many more women. This is good for rural America, too: As small-yield farming becomes more viable (and farmer's markets and niche buyers are helping that process along), rural areas become more appealing, attract younger populations, develop new economies, and generally get a shot at revitalization. And insofar as there's a policy impact here, it's in the strengthening of a useful counterbalancing interest group: The more small farms, the more political power held by small farmers. And rebalancing our agricultural policy away from major producers and towards small farmers, even if just incrementally, would be a welcome change.