MISSOURI — University of Missouri Extension economists urge farmers to sign up for the USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture. The deadline to sign up to receive a census form is June 30. Sign up at nass.usda.gov/AgCensus(opens in new window).

MU Extension economist Ryan Milhollin says federal, state and local governments as well as agribusinesses, researchers, trade associations and others use the data to serve farmers and rural communities.

It’s not necessary to sign up if you already receive surveys from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service.

USDA conducts the survey every five years. It is the only source of uniform, comprehensive and impartial data on agriculture for every county in the U.S., Milhollin says. USDA will release the information in 2024. Information from the census helps shape agricultural policy and farm programs, including MU Extension programs, he says. It gives a picture of agriculture’s economic impact in the U.S.

The Census of Agriculture counts U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them. Even small plots of land, rural or urban, that are growing fruit, vegetables or food animals count if the owner raised and sold – or normally would have sold – $1,000 or more of such products during the census year.

Milhollin says the data helps policymakers see emerging trends such as land uses, renewable energy, food marketing practices, young and beginning farmers and ranchers; women, veteran and minority farmers and ranchers; specialty crops; and organic production. This helps legislators make decisions that protect the future of agriculture, he says.

USDA does not publish any data that discloses information about individual farms. However, USDA does publish counts by ZIP code.

Sign up to receive the census at nass.usda.gov/AgCensus(opens in new window) before June 30. Census forms will be sent to farmers in November and can be returned by mail or securely submitted online.

For more information, call USDA toll-free at 888-424-7828.