The 2014 Organic Survey is a complete inventory of all known organic producers that are certified, exempt from certification in the Unites States (those grossing less than $5,000 annually from organic sales), and those producers transitioning to organic production. This study serves as a census of all organic operations, as directed under the FY2014 Farm Appropriations Bill. You do not need to be certified organic to take the survey! The survey includes USDA certified organic producers, organic producers exempt from certification (those grossing less than $5,000 annually from organic sales), and producers transitioning to organic production.
Your responses will provide important, detailed, unbiased information to help determine the economic impact of organic production at the national and state levels. According to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, total organic product sales by farms in the U.S. have continued to show substantial growth over the last few years, increasing by 83 percent since 2007. Additionally, the sales from 14,326 farms with certified or exempt organic production totaled over $3.1 billion in 2012. Data published from the 2014 Organic Survey will help provide the industry with a reliable source of timely information to use in justifying research projects and fund requests to benefit producers.
The agriculture industry and all levels of government use the information to prepare a wide variety of organic agriculture-related programs, economic models, legislative initiatives, and market analysis and feasibility studies. These programs directly affect the life and communities of growers and help to improve agriculture production technologies and practices. Specific examples of benefits to producers include
- Agencies such as USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) use the data to evaluate and establish crop insurance programs for organic producers
- Farm organizations use the information to lobby Congress or state legislatures for funding and support of organic production programs
- Government, extension, and university scientists use the information to determine research needs
- The information could be used to calculate disaster payments for producers
- Suppliers to the organic industry use the data to plan production and marketing of new products
Take the survey at www.agcensus.usda.gov