Sample News Release - Pre-Survey

NEWS RELEASE

United States Department of Agriculture

NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS SERVICE

[FIELD OFFICE NAME] FIELD OFFICE

[ADDRESS]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	Contact: [Firstname] [Lastname]
	(XXX) XXX-XXXX Email

USDA to survey row crops county acreage and production

CITY, State – Month day, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will survey producers in 37 states, including [STATE], as part of its 2022 Row Crops County Agricultural Production Survey. The survey will collect information on total acres planted and harvested and total yield and production of row crops to support estimates down to the county level. Producers can complete their survey securely online at agcounts.usda.gov.

“The data provided by producers will help federal and state programs support the farmer,” said [FIRSTNAME LASTNAME], [director of the NASS [REGION] Field Office]/[ [STATE] state statistician]. “We hope every producer who receives this survey will take the time to respond. Producers benefit when there are data available to help determine accurate loan rates, disaster payments, crop insurance price elections, and more. Without data, agencies such as USDA’s Risk Management Agency or Farm Service Agency may not have enough information on which to base their programs.”

Producers may receive an email reminder to complete their questionnaire. If they do not respond [by DATE], a NASS representative will contact selected [STATE] farmers to arrange an interview to complete the survey.

The information producers provide will be used for statistical purposes only. In accordance with federal law, responses will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed in identifiable form.

The survey data will be published in NASS’s Quick Stats database (quickstats.nass.usda.gov). For more information on NASS surveys and reports and for the release dates by commodity, visit nass.usda.gov/Publications/Calendar/reports_by_date.php or contact the NASS [Region] Field Office at [Toll-free Number].

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NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.