DECEMBER FIELD CROP SURVEY PLANNED

SACRAMENTO - Approximately 2,400 California farmers and ranchers will be part of a national sample of producers who will be contacted for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s December Agricultural Survey.

The survey will be conducted during the first half of December by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. The information collected will be used to make state estimates of field crop production, grain and hay stocks, small grain seedings and livestock, which will then be combined into regional and National estimates.

"This survey is important in making accurate crop and livestock estimates, which provide a basis for an orderly marketing system," said Vic Tolomeo, Director of the California Agricultural Statistics Service (CASS).  "An orderly marketing system is essential to all involved in agriculture. Farmers selected for the survey will soon be notified by letter and contacted by a CASS representative.”

In addition to general release to the public and press, the survey findings will go to government policy makers and farm organizations, which use the survey results to help develop farm policy positions. Other users include universities, extension agents, farm management consultants, agricultural lenders, and businesses that provide input to farmers.

Facts about an individual's farm or ranch are strictly confidential and used only in combination with reports from other producers to set California and U.S. estimates. Once results of the survey are compiled and analyzed, the information will be released in a series of reports. A copy of the results may be requested at the time of the interview.

-30-