USDA Surveys Getting A Snapshot Of Farmland Ownership

Jan 02, 2015

USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service has sent surveys to learn more about the challenges of land ownership. Manager of the NASS Economic and Environmental Survey Section Shiela Corley says the total survey asks a variety of questions.

“It’s going to producers and also to land owners so we’re seeking information on land owner income, debt, assets, demographics, landlord characteristics, so we can begin to look at the picture of what land ownership looks like for agriculture. We do this survey every ten years so the last time we did it was in 1998 so it’s clearly time for us to get this information out and updated so we have a better picture of what land ownership looks like for farmers in the U.S.”

Eighty-thousand surveys have been mailed out. Corley says that’s a much larger sample size than NASS surveys usually use.

“We normally always survey producers at the beginning of January and get information on income, debt, expenses and that sample size is usually around 30,000. But because this data is so important and we only get it every ten years we actually bumped the sample size up and we’re going to publish in 25 states and normally we only publish in 15 and do a U.S. total. So for this year, we’re going to have a lot more information available but with that comes an increased sample size.”

Click here to see more...

Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.