Agriculture Census forms mailed out
By Deborah Bennett Millen News Editor

Local farmers and other agriculture interests will soon receive the 2007 Census of Agriculture forms from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in their mailboxes. The forms were mailed Dec. 28 and are due by Feb. 4.

The census is conducted every five years in order to determine a complete count of the nation's farms and ranches and the people who operate them. The Census looks at land use and ownership, operator characteristics, production practices, income and expenditures and other topics. It provides the only source of uniform, comprehensive agricultural data for every county in the nation.

Census response can help determine federal support for crucial services that aid local communities. Policy-makers factor Census data into decisions concerning agricultural and rural programs. Community planners use Census information when developing local programs and services. Companies factor Census data into decisions concerning where to locate their operations, and farmers rely on Census data when making critical decisions about their businesses.

"The Census of Agriculture provides information that is not available anywhere else - information that benefits agricultural producers and their communities in myriad ways," said Doug Kleweno, director of the Georgia Field Office of USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Services (NASS).

Producers can turn their completed forms in by mail, or for the first time, they may fill them out online via a secure website. Response is required by law and is held strictly confidential. The 2007 Census data will be released February 2009.

For more information about the 2007 Census of Agriculture, visit www.agcensus.usda.gov.