United States Census of Agriculture

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United States Census of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service logo.

Genre| Census
Frequency| Quinquenial
Country| United States
Inaugurated| 1840; 184 years ago (1840)
Most recent| 2017
Organized by| National Agricultural Statistics Service
Website| agcensus.usda.gov

The Census of Agriculture is a census conducted every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) that provides the only source of uniform, comprehensive agricultural data for every county in the United States.

## Overview

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The census is a complete count of U.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 many other areas. This picture, when compared to earlier censuses, helps to measure trends and new developments in the agricultural sector of the nation's economy.

Title 7 of the United States Code requires all those who receive a census report form to respond – even if they did not operate a farm or ranch during the census year. The same law protects the confidentiality of all census respondents. NASS uses the information only for statistical purposes and publishes data only in tabulated totals. The report cannot be used for purposes of taxation, investigation or regulation. The privacy of individual census records is also protected from disclosure through the Freedom of Information Act.

For census purposes, a farm is defined as a place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the census year. This farm definition has changed nine times throughout history and the current definition has been in effect since 1974.

## History

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The first Census of Agriculture was taken in 1840 as part of the sixth decennial population census. The census remained a part of the decennial census through 1950, with separate mid-decade Censuses of Agriculture taken in 1925, 1935 and 1945. As time passed, census years were adjusted until the reference year coincided with the economic censuses covering other sectors of the nation's economy. Currently, the Census of Agriculture is conducted for years ending in 2 and 7.

The 1997 Census of Agriculture has historical significance because it was the first conducted by NASS after the 1997 Appropriations Act shifted responsibility of the Census of Agriculture from the U.S. Census Bureau, which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, to USDA.

## Uses of census data

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Census data is used by all those who serve farmers and rural communities – federal, state and local governments, agribusinesses, trade associations and many others. For instance:

* Companies and cooperatives use the information to determine the locations of facilities that will serve agricultural producers.
* Community planners use the information to target needed services to rural residents.
* USDA uses the information to ensure that local service centers are staffed at appropriate levels.
* Legislators use the information when shaping farm policies and programs.
* Farmers and ranchers use Census data to help make informed decisions about the future of their own operations.

## External links

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* Census of Agriculture -- official website
* NASS web site
* 7 U.S.C. § 2204g: Authority of Secretary of Agriculture to conduct census of agriculture

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United States censuses

Century|

| 18th|

* 1790
* 1800

|

19th|

* 1810
* 1820
* 1830
* 1840
* 1850
* 1860
* 1870
* 1880
* 1890
* 1900

20th|

* 1910
* 1920
* 1930
* 1940
* 1950
* 1960
* 1970
* 1980
* 1990
* 2000

21st|

* 2010
* 2020
* 2030

* United States Census Bureau
* United States Census of Agriculture

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United States Department of Agriculture

* Headquarters: Jamie L. Whitten Building

* Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture
* Xochitl Torres Small, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs|

* Foreign Agricultural Service
* United States Codex Office

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Natural Resources and Environment|

* Forest Service

Under Secretary for Rural Development|

* Rural Housing Service
* Rural Utilities Service
* Rural Business-Cooperative Service

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services|

* Food and Nutrition Service (Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion)

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Food Safety|

* Food Safety and Inspection Service

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Research, Education, and Economics|

* Agricultural Research Service (National Agricultural Library)
* National Agricultural Statistics Service
* Economic Research Service
* National Institute of Food and Agriculture
* Office of the Chief Scientist

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Marketing and Regulatory Programs|

* Agricultural Marketing Service
* Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Under Secretary of Agriculture for
Farm Production and Conservation|

* Farm Service Agency (Commodity Credit Corporation)
* Risk Management Agency (Federal Crop Insurance Corporation)
* Natural Resources Conservation Service
* Farm Production and Conservation Business Center

Office of the Chief Financial Officer|

* National Finance Center

*Reports directly to the Secretary of Agriculture

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Agriculture in the United States

History|

* Rural American history
* African-American
* Black land loss
* Ancient Hawaiian aquaculture
* Cattle drives
* Columbian exchange
* Eastern Agricultural Complex
* Three Sisters
* Early history of food regulation in the United States
* Indentured servitude in British America
* Virginia
* Pennsylvania
* New World crops
* List of food plants native to the Americas
* Native American in Virginia
* Prehistoric agriculture on the Great Plains
* Prehistoric agriculture in the Southwestern United States
* Wine
* Range war
* Sheep wars
* Slavery
* Native American
* Colonial

Industries|

* Banana
* Bee
* Blackcurrant
* Cannabis
* Hemp
* Cherry
* Christmas tree
* Corn
* Cotton
* Cider
* Dairy
* Hop
* Poultry
* Rice
* Spinach
* Sugar
* Tea
* Tobacco
* Connecticut shade tobacco
* Wheat
* Wine

State, commonwealth,
or territory-specific|

* Alabama
* wine
* Alaska
* aquaculture
* cannabis
* wine
* Arizona
* wine
* cannabis
* Arkansas
* rice
* wine
* California
* almonds
* cannabis
* walnuts
* wine
* Colorado
* wine
* cannabis
* Connecticut
* cannabis
* wine
* Delaware
* cannabis
* wine
* Florida
* wine
* tomato
* mango
* Georgia
* wine
* Hawaii
* coffee
* sugar
* wine
* genetically modified food
* Idaho
* wine
* Illinois
* cannabis
* wine
* Indiana
* wine
* Iowa
* wine
* Kansas
* wine
* Kentucky
* wine
* Louisiana
* wine
* Maine
* aquaculture
* cannabis
* wine
* Maryland
* cannabis
* wine
* Massachusetts
* cannabis
* wine
* Michigan
* cannabis
* cherries
* wine
* Minnesota
* wine
* Mississippi
* wine
* Missouri
* cannabis
* wine
* Montana
* cannabis
* wine
* Nebraska
* wine
* Nevada
* cannabis
* wine
* New Hampshire
* wine
* New Jersey
* cannabis
* wine
* New York
* cannabis
* wine
* New Mexico
* cannabis
* chile
* wine
* North Carolina
* wine
* North Dakota
* wine
* Ohio
* wine
* Oklahoma
* wine
* Oregon
* wine
* cannabis
* Pennsylvania
* wine
* Puerto Rico
* cannabis
* coffee
* Rhode Island
* cannabis
* wine
* South Carolina
* wine
* South Dakota
* wine
* Tennessee
* wine
* Utah
* wine
* Vermont
* cannabis
* wine
* Virginia
* cannabis
* wine
* Virgin Islands
* cannabis
* Washington
* apples
* cannabis
* wine
* West Virginia
* wine
* Wisconsin
* dairy
* wine
* Wyoming
* wine
* Guam
* cannabis
* Northern Mariana Islands
* cannabis
* Texas
* rice
* wine

By region|

* Southwestern United States
* Black Dirt Region
* Corn Belt
* Cotton Belt
* Fruit Belt
* Rice Belt
* Pacific Northwest oyster industry

Government
organizations|

* United States Department of Agriculture
* National Agricultural Statistics Service
* United States Census of Agriculture

Law and
politics|

* Agricultural policy
* Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954
* Agriculture Risk Protection Act of 2000
* California Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975
* Capper–Volstead Act
* Children's Act for Responsible Employment
* Farm bill
* Food Security Act of 1985
* Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990
* Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996
* Grain Futures Act
* Packers and Stockyards Act
* Pure Food and Drug Act
* Taylor Grazing Act of 1934

Health and
environment|

* Agricultural workers mental health
* Climate change
* Farmer suicide
* Genetically modified food
* Water supply
* Ogallala Aquifer

Crime|

* Adulterated food
* California nut crimes
* Cattle raiding

Labor|

* Bracero Program
* Convict leasing
* Farm Labor Organizing Committee
* H-2A visa
* Operation Blooming Onion
* United Farm Workers
* United Food and Commercial Workers
* Woman's Land Army of America

Other|

* Corn maze
* Ranch
* Cowboy
* Dude ranch

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