Source: USDA, 1/7/16

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will spend the next several months gathering information about production practices from farmers and ranchers across the nation through the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). The results of this survey will serve as a primary source of information for numerous federal policies and programs that affect U.S. farms and farm families. 

“Accurate data are key to better decision-making,” said Dee Webb, State Statistician of the NASS North Carolina Field Office. “By responding to ARMS, North Carolina farmers ensure that decisions impacting them are based on accurate real-life information.” 

NASS conducts ARMS jointly with USDA’s Economic Research Service. In an effort to obtain the most accurate data, the federal agencies will reach out to about 30,000 producers nationwide, including 1,695 in North Carolina between January and April 2016. The survey asks producers to provide data on their operating expenditures, production costs and household characteristics. 

“We realize that this survey is lengthy and some producers may have questions or need clarification,” explained Webb. “In late January, our interviewers will begin reaching out to those farmers who have not yet responded to answer any questions they may have and help them fill out their questionnaires.” 

In addition accurate data, NASS is strongly committed to confidentiality. Information provided by respondents is confidential by law. The agency safeguards the confidentiality of all responses, ensuring no individual respondent or operation can be identified.

The economic data gathered in ARMS will be published in the annual Farm Production Expenditures report on August 1, 2016. All NASS reports are available online at www.nass.usda.gov.