# Presentation: 907259

## NASS and the FDL

**Rich Allen**
** ****Associate Administrator**
**October 21, 2002**

**National Agricultural Statistics Service**

## To provide timely, accurate,

- and useful statistics in service
- to U.S. agriculture.

**Notes:**
-Statistical arm of USDA
Involves:
-Supply National, State, and local agricultural statistics
-Statistical consulting for other Federal and State organizations and other countries requesting assistance
-Statistical research program
-Our business is service

Next:  What does NASS do?

## What Does NASS Do?

- Administer USDA’s Statistical Estimating Program and the 5-year Census of Agriculture
- Coordinate Federal/State Agricultural Statistical needs
- Statistical consulting for other Federal/State or private organizations and other countries
- Statistical Research

**Notes:**

Next:  What doesn’t NASS do?

## What Doesn’t NASS Do?

- Set policy
- Regulate activities
- Permit influence
- Disclose individual reports
- Favor any group above others

**Notes:**

Next:  What NASS Doesn’t Do – Part 2

## What Doesn’t NASS Do?

- International Statistics
- Daily, Weekly Market News
- Economic Interpretations
- Non-survey Projections

**Notes:**

Next:  NASS – Fact Finders 

## National Agricultural Statistics Service

**“****Agriculture’s *****FACT***** finders”**
**Weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual reports****	**
**Census of agriculture (5 years) showcasing demographic and specialty agriculture data****	**

**Notes:**
Next:  Types of Reports 

## Types of Reports

**Weekly hatchery, crop conditions**
**Monthly crop forecast, slaughter, cattle on feed inventories, etc. **
**Quarterly grain stocks, acreage reports, hog inventories, etc. **
**Annual crop production, livestock inventories, environmental estimates, farm production expenditures, etc. ****	**

**Notes:**
Next:  Did You Know... 

## Who Uses the Data? 

**Farmers and ranchers rely on NASS reports to make production and marketing decisions **
**Agribusinesses who provide farmers with seeds, equipment, chemicals, and other goods and services study NASS reports when planning their marketing strategies**

**Notes:**
Next:  Who uses the data?

## Who Uses the Data? 

**Food processors, transportation providers, storage facilities, banks, and other financial institutions rely on NASS data**
**Analysts use NASS statistics to make projections of coming trends and their economic implications**
**Librarians and other researchers **

**Notes:**
1.  ERS receives numerous calls each week from farm associations and legislators considering new farm policy and program changes.  ERS analyzes the expected impact of these policies then communicates it’s findings.  The result is the good ideas move forward and the bad ideas are reworked or dropped.  Good ARMS data makes this possible.
Ag Outlook – This is the monthly ERS publication.  Articles often draw from the ARMS data.  ‘A Safety Net for Farm Households?’ (January-February 2000) and ‘A Fair Income for Farmers’ (May 2000) are examples of recent material. 

Next:  Who uses the data?

## Who Uses the Data? 

**U.S. and State legislatures to make well-informed long-range plans and emergency decisions that affect farmers/ranchers**
**Farm and Ranch associations to promote agriculture and protect member interests**

**Notes:**
Next:  Program Areas

## www.usda.gov/nass/

**www.usda.gov/nass/**

**Notes:**
Next:  NASS Web Site

## NASS Web Site

- Internet presence since 1995
- Reports are posted immediately after release
- Paper copies are available for almost all NASS reports

**Notes:**
Next:  NASS Web Site

## NASS Web Site

- Quick Stats
- Report Repository
- Current Information
- Special Links

**Notes:**
Next:  Quick Stats

## NASS Web Site – Quick Stats

- U.S., State, county database
- Some data back to 1866
- Data format options

**Notes:**
Next:  Ag Chem Database

## NASS Web Site – Ag Chem Database

**Query database by crop, year, and active ingredient**
**Data from 1990 - 2001 **
**Cooperative effort  - NASS, Center for Integrated Pest Management, and USDA Regional Pest Management Centers**

**Notes:**
Next:  ESS – Mann Library

## NASS Web Site – ESS

- USDA’s Economic and Statistics System
- Contract with the Mann Library
- Archive reports since 1995
- Free e-mail subscriptions

**Notes:**
Next:  NASS Reports

## Over 400 National reports published annually
Over 9,000 State-level reports annually
Census reports for each State, Nation, and outlying areas 

**Over 400 National reports published annually**
**Over 9,000 State-level reports annually**
**Census reports for each State, Nation, and outlying areas**** **

**Notes:**

Next:  Board calendar

## Agricultural Statistics Board Calendar

**July 2002**

**Notes:**

Next:  What is the Census of Agriculture?

## What is the Census of Agriculture?

**Accounting of U.S. agricultural producers and production**
**Only source of uniform, comprehensive agricultural data for every county in the Nation**
**Taken every five years in years ending with 2 and 7**

**Notes:**

Next: Why the Census of Agriculture?

##  Why the Census of Agriculture?

**Best interest of nation’s agricultural producers**
**Policy decisions *****targeted locally***
**Commercial decisions *****targeted locally***
**State university research analysis *****targeted locally***
**Producers interest begins *****locally***

**Notes:**

Next: Census Scope and Content

##  Scope and Content

**Land use and ownership**
**Operator characteristics**
**Crop production and acreage**
**Machinery and equipment**
**Livestock and poultry**
**Fertilizer and chemical use**
**Farm labor**

**Notes:**

Next: More Census Scope and Content

##  Scope and Content

**Value of sales**
**Other farm-related income**
**Production expenditures**
**Market value of land and buildings**
**Irrigated land**
**Type of organization**
**Corporate structure**

**Notes:**
Corporate structure
Family held
More than 10 stockholders

Next: Farm Definition

##  Farm Definition

- A** **farm is any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the census year.

**Notes:**
Will assign points to ag commodities when farm definition is not met, but would usually produce $1,000 in ag sales.

Next: Trends over time

##  Trends Over Time

** ****Trends Over Time**

**Notes:**
Since 1900 total number of farms has decreased from 5.7 million to nearly 1.9 million in 1997

Next: More Trends – Average Size of Farm

##  Changes for 2002 Census

**Scannable questionnaire**
**Measure computer and internet access**
**Organic sales**
**Production contracts/landlord shares**
**Multiple operators**

**Notes:**
Scannable
More pages, but not more work
Computer and internet use
Just as the census monitored the possession and use of radios on the farm at the turn of the last century, we’re now tracking the use of internet access at the beginning of this century

Next: More Changes for the 2002 Census

## Aquatic plants

- Acres treated with animal manure
- Grain storage capacity
- New commodities

**Notes:**
New commodities
•Livestock:  farm raised bison, elk, llamas, and deer
•Poultry:  emus, ostriches

Less detail for some commodities
Nursery sales detail, pounds of fruits and nuts, breakout of heifers and steers, and irrigated acres of specific vegetables and berry crops

Next:  Release Dates – Vol. 1

##   Release Dates for the 2002 Census

**Vol.1 Geographic Area Series – Feb. ‘04**
**U.S.**
**State and County**
**Puerto Rico**
**Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands – Summer ‘03**
**American Samoa – Summer ‘04**

**Notes:**
Vol. 1. Geographic Area Series
U.S., State, and County data released February 2004 to the Internet
Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands will be released during the Summer of 2003.
American Samoa will be released during the Summer of 2004.	
Printed copies and CD’s will follow after these dates. 

Next:  County Profile

## Slide 28

**Notes:**

Next:  Release Dates - Specialty Products

##   Release Dates for the 2002 Census

**Specialty Products **
**State and County Highlights - Spring ‘04**
**County Profiles – Spring ‘04**
**Native American – Fall ‘04 **
**Top Commodities – Fall ‘04**

**Notes:**
Specialty Products
State and County Highlights and Profiles will be released sometime during the Spring of 2004 and only to the Internet. 
Native American publication will be released in the Fall of 2004, and printed copies will follow a few months later.
Top commodities – Fall 2004, Internet only.	

Next:  Volume 2 Subject Series

##   Release Dates for the 2002 Census

**Vol. 2  Subject Series**
**Agricultural Atlas – Summer ‘04**
**Congressional District Ranking – Dec. ‘04**
**Zip Code Tabulations – Dec. ‘04**

**Notes:**
Vol. 1. Geographic Area Series
•Ag. Atlas will be released to the Internet sometime during the Summer of 2004, with printed copies to follow in the Fall.
•Congressional District Ranking and Congressional District Tabulations will be released December 2004. 

Next:  Volume 3 - Special Studies 

##   Release Dates for the 2002 Census

**Vol. 3  Special Studies**
**Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey **
**– ****Dec. ‘04**
**Census of Horticultural Specialties **
**– ****Dec. ‘05**
**Census of Aquaculture – Dec. ‘06**

**Notes:**
Vol. 3. Geographic Area Series
Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey will be conducted during 2003 and released December 2004 
Census of Horticultural Specialties will be conducted during 2004 and released December 2005
Census of Aquaculture – Conducted 2005, released December 2006

Next:  Cropland Data Layer

## Landsat based land use classification 

- Landsat based land use classification
- Available only for selected States
- CD-ROM product in GIS formats

**Notes:**
Vol. 3. Geographic Area Series
Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey will be conducted during 2003 and released December 2004 
Census of Horticultural Specialties will be conducted during 2004 and released December 2005
Census of Aquaculture – Conducted 2005, released December 2006

Next:  Remote Sensing - Landsat

## Remote Sensing - Landsat

**Notes:**
-Examples of visual display of ag land by crop
-Also use for estimating acreage by crop.
-Use different satellite for monitoring crop progress and condition.
-Partnership with ARS to investigate forecasting yields.
-Data collection, processing, and estimation result in NASS reports.

Next:  AVHRR image of the Northeast drought in 1999

## Remote Sensing - AVHRR

**Notes:**
-Examples of visual display of ag land by crop
-Also use for estimating acreage by crop.
-Use different satellite for monitoring crop progress and condition.
-Partnership with ARS to investigate forecasting yields.
-Data collection, processing, and estimation result in NASS reports.

Next:  Thank You

## THANK YOUfor Your Support!

- www.usda.gov/nass