America’s producers have a story
to tell, and the Census gives them a voice to
tell it with. NASS recently launched “Share My Story” on the Census website to ask farmers how the
Census impacts their lives, operations and communities. A row crop and hog
farmer from Indiana posted a story telling us the data is a tool to track, “how
our herd numbers, acreage, technology use and practices…compare to other local
farmers, farmers across the state of Indiana and farmers across the
country.”
The Census also helps tell the whole story of U.S. agriculture. Without the information collected we wouldn’t know that 3 million farmers in the United States, only one percent of our total population, provide feed, fuel, and fiber to the other 99 percent. While that seems like a huge task, we know that farmers are stepping up to the challenge because the data tell us that U.S. agriculture is growing.
The last Census counted more than
2 million farms and ranches in the United States spanning more than 922 million
acres. That’s nearly a 4 percent increase in the number of farms from the
previous Census in 2002. Those farms produced more than 2 billion bushels of
soybeans, 18 million bales of cotton, and $37 billion in egg and poultry sales.
And, working on those farms were more than one million women farmers, a 19
percent increase from 2002.
As preparations continue for this
year’s Census of Agriculture, we call on farmers and ranchers to share their stories, ask questions and talk to their fellow
producers about this critical effort. Your
answers to the Census help grow your farm future; shape farm programs; and
boost services for you, your community and your industry.
Census forms will be mailed out
in late December, and responses are due by February 4th, 2013. Producers also
have the option to complete their forms online. After all, the Census is your
voice, your future and your responsibility. For more information about the
Census, visit www.agcensus.usda.gov or call 1-888-4AG-STAT
(1-888-424-7828).
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