Farmland owners will be surveyed about challenges of ownership as per USDA

Dec 30, 2014

Landowners should receive survey forms soon if they haven’t already

By Diego Flammini, Farms.com

Over 80,000 farmland owners and product producers across the United States will, or have already received Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land (TOTAL) survey forms.

The forms, being distributed to 48 states by the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), are designed to measure financial impacts and challenges associated with owning farmland.

“The latest Census of Agriculture (2012) helped us determine that more than 350 million acres of farmland in the United States are rented or leased, but it has been more than a decade since we spoke to individuals who own that land,” said Jay Johnson, Director of NASS’ Census and Survey Division. “Today’s economic conditions change so quickly that we constantly have the need for new and updated data, which reflect the true conditions in agriculture sector.”

The TOTAL survey will be given to farmers and landlords who are not farmers, to get a better and complete scope of the finances, resources, and demographics involved with ownership. The response are required by law and the individual responses will be kept confidential. People who don’t respond can expect calls from interviewers around February to help them along.

“I know this is one of our lengthier surveys, but there is a tremendous amount of value in the information farmers and landowners provide,” said Johnson. “I hope all individuals who receive the TOTAL survey form will take the time to respond.”

Farms.com will publish The TOTAL survey results when they become available.

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