View from the Cab: Survey time coming

By: Kent Casson

More than 5,000 producers from across Illinois will be contacted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service starting this month as part of the 2023 Row Crops County Ag Production Survey.

This survey will collect information on total acres planted and harvested along with total yield and production of row crops to support estimates down to the county level. The survey can be completed securely online at www.agcounts.usda.gov.

If producers do not submit completed questionnaires by Nov. 1, a NASS representative will contact selected Illinois farmers to arrange interviews. Information provided is used for statistical purposes only and individual responses are kept confidential and are not published in identifiable form.

“The data provided by producers will help federal and state programs support the farmer,” explains Mark Schleusener, Illinois State Statistician. “We hope every producer who receives this survey will take the time to respond with their best estimate now, or when harvest is nearly complete.”

According to Schleusener, producers benefit when data is available to help determine accurate loan rates, disaster payments, crop insurance price elections and more. Without data, agencies such as USDA’s Risk Management Agency or Farm Service Agency may not have accurate information on which to base their programs.

The information will be published in February 2024 in NASS’s Quick Stats Database found at www.quickstats.nass.usda.gov.

For help with the survey or more information, visit www.nass.usda.gov/go/county-production or contact the NASS Heartland Regional Field Office at 800-551-1014.

NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture.