USDA Conducting National Survey of Organic Agriculture

TRENTON — According to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, total organic product sales by farms and ranches in the U.S. have continued to show substantial growth over the last few years, increasing by 83 percent since 2007. To learn more about the trends of organic agriculture in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is now conducting the 2014 Organic Survey.
“The Organic Survey comes in direct response to the continued interest in organics among consumers, producers, businesses, and others,” said Bruce Eklund, State Statistician of the NASS New Jersey Office. “This is an opportunity for organic producers to provide more detailed data to help provide the industry with a reliable source of information to use in justifying research projects and fund requests for the continued growth and sustainability of organic farming and ranching in the United States.”
NASS continues to collect data from all known organic producers in the United States. The survey will look at many aspects of organic agriculture during the 2014 calendar year – from production and marketing practices, to income and expenses. It will focus not only on operations that are currently engaged in organic production, but also on those making the transition to organic agriculture.
“The results of the survey will help shape future decisions regarding farm policy, funding allocations, availability of goods and services, and other key issues,” Eklund noted. “In addition, the information can help producers make informed decisions about the future of their own farming operations.”
Producers can fill out the survey online via a secure website, www.agcensus.usda.gov, or return their form by mail. Federal law (Title 7, U.S. Code) requires all producers who receive a form to respond and requires NASS to keep all individual information confidential.
Recipients are required to respond by mail by as soon as possible or online by April 3, 2015. NASS will publish the results in Aug. 2015. For more information about the Organic Survey, visit www.agcensus.usda.gov or call (717) 787-3904.