HDR1012000170150730971500FARMS AND LAND IN FARMS Farms and Land in Farms National Agricultural Statistics Service United States Department of Agriculture Washington, D.C. Released July 30, 1997, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Farms and Land in Farms" call Brad Parks at (202) 690-3229, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Farm Numbers and Land in Farms Down Slightly The number of farms in the United States in 1997 is estimated at 2.06 million, down less than one percent from 1996. Total land in farms is 968 million acres, also down less than one percent from last year. This decline in farm numbers and land in farms continues to follow historical trends. The average farm size was unchanged from 1996 at 470 acres. The West and Northeast Regions were both up in farm numbers from 1996. The West Region showed the largest increase up 2,000 farms or 0.7%, while the Northeast was up 300 farms or 0.2% from 1996. The largest decrease was in the South with a loss of 3,800 farms or 0.4%. The North Central Region was down 3,500 farms or 0.4%. Texas remained the State with the most farms at 205,000, the same as a year earlier. Missouri was second with 102,000 farms, down 2,000 from last year, followed by Iowa with 98,000 farms, the same as 1996. Eight States increased in farm numbers while 14 states decreased from a year ago. California showed the largest increase with 2,000 farms while Indiana, Montana, Ohio, and Oklahoma showed increases of 1,000 farms from last year. Missouri showed the largest decrease, 2,000 farms. Texas continued to lead the nation in land in farms and ranches with 129.0 million acres, the same as 1996. Four states with decreases of 200,000 acres in agricultural land from a year ago were Arkansas, Louisiana, North Carolina, and New Mexico. There were nine states with decreases of 100,000 acres in agricultural land from a year ago. There were no states that increased acres in agricultural land in farms from a year ago. The number of U.S. farms in the economic sales class between $1,000 and $9,999 increased from 1,021,110 in 1996 to 1,032,510 in 1997. Those with sales in the $10,000-$99,999 group decreased from 705,100 to 678,500. The $100,000 and over sales group increased from 337,700 to 347,900 farms. Estimates for the number of farms and land in farms refer to June 1. A farm is defined as "any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were sold or would normally be sold during the year." Sp Sy 3 (7-97) Number of Farms, Land in Farms, and Average Farm Size: United States, June 1, 1987-97 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Land : Average Year : of Farms : in Farms : Farm Size -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 1,000 Acres Acres : 1987 : 2,213 998,923 451 1988 : 2,201 994,423 452 1989 : 2,175 990,723 456 1990 : 2,146 986,850 460 1991 : 2,117 981,736 464 1992 : 2,108 978,503 464 1993 : 2,083 976,463 469 1994 : 2,065 973,403 471 1995 : 2,072 972,253 469 1996 : 2,064 970,048 470 1997 : 2,059 968,338 470 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ A farm is any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were sold or would normally be sold during the year. Number of Farms: By State and United States, June 1, 1995-7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ State : 1995 : 1996 : 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Number : AL : 47,000 45,000 45,000 AK : 520 510 510 AZ : 7,400 7,500 7,500 AR : 43,000 43,000 42,500 CA : 80,000 82,000 84,000 CO : 25,000 24,500 24,500 CT : 3,800 3,800 3,900 DE : 2,500 2,500 2,400 FL : 39,000 40,000 40,000 GA : 45,000 43,000 43,000 HI : 4,800 4,600 4,600 ID : 21,500 22,000 22,000 IL : 77,000 76,000 76,000 IN : 62,000 61,000 62,000 IA : 100,000 98,000 98,000 KS : 66,000 66,000 65,000 KY : 89,000 88,000 88,000 LA : 27,000 27,000 26,500 ME : 7,600 7,400 7,300 MD : 14,300 13,700 13,000 MA : 6,000 6,100 6,200 MI : 54,000 53,000 52,000 MN : 87,000 87,000 87,000 MS : 42,000 44,000 43,000 MO : 105,000 104,000 102,000 MT : 22,000 22,000 23,000 NE : 56,000 56,000 55,000 NV : 2,500 2,500 2,500 NH : 2,300 2,400 2,400 NJ : 9,000 9,200 9,400 NM : 13,500 13,500 13,500 NY : 36,000 36,000 36,000 NC : 58,000 58,000 57,000 ND : 32,000 31,000 30,500 OH : 74,000 72,000 73,000 OK : 71,000 72,000 73,000 OR : 38,500 38,500 37,500 PA : 50,000 50,000 50,000 RI : 700 700 700 SC : 22,000 21,500 21,500 SD : 33,000 32,500 32,500 TN : 81,000 80,000 80,000 TX : 202,000 205,000 205,000 UT : 13,400 13,400 13,400 VT : 6,000 6,000 6,000 VA : 47,000 48,000 47,000 WA : 36,000 36,000 36,000 WV : 20,000 20,000 20,000 WI : 80,000 79,000 79,000 WY : 9,200 9,100 9,100 : US : 2,071,520 2,063,910 2,058,910 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Land in Farms: By State and United States, June 1, 1995-97 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ State : 1995 : 1996 : 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 Acres : AL : 10,200 9,800 9,700 AK : 920 920 920 AZ : 35,400 35,400 35,400 AR : 15,000 15,000 14,800 CA : 30,000 30,000 30,000 CO : 32,700 32,500 32,500 CT : 380 380 380 DE : 570 565 565 FL : 10,300 10,300 10,300 GA : 12,000 11,800 11,800 HI : 1,590 1,590 1,590 ID : 13,500 13,500 13,500 IL : 28,100 28,100 28,000 IN : 15,900 15,900 15,900 IA : 33,200 33,200 33,200 KS : 47,800 47,800 47,800 KY : 14,000 14,000 13,900 LA : 8,500 8,700 8,500 ME : 1,350 1,340 1,340 MD : 2,200 2,100 2,100 MA : 570 570 570 MI : 10,700 10,600 10,500 MN : 29,800 29,800 29,800 MS : 13,000 12,600 12,500 MO : 30,000 30,000 29,900 MT : 59,700 59,700 59,600 NE : 47,000 47,000 47,000 NV : 8,800 8,800 8,800 NH : 440 430 430 NJ : 850 840 830 NM : 44,000 43,700 43,500 NY : 7,700 7,700 7,700 NC : 9,200 9,200 9,000 ND : 40,300 40,300 40,200 OH : 15,200 15,100 15,100 OK : 34,000 34,000 34,000 OR : 17,500 17,500 17,500 PA : 7,700 7,700 7,700 RI : 63 63 63 SC : 5,050 5,000 5,000 SD : 44,000 44,000 44,000 TN : 12,000 11,800 11,800 TX : 129,000 129,000 129,000 UT : 11,100 11,000 11,000 VT : 1,370 1,350 1,350 VA : 8,600 8,600 8,500 WA : 15,800 15,700 15,700 WV : 3,700 3,700 3,700 WI : 16,900 16,800 16,800 WY : 34,600 34,600 34,600 : US : 972,253 970,048 968,338 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1997 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : NY : 16,900 11,000 8,100 36,000 PA : 24,000 17,700 8,300 50,000 Other States 1/ : 22,400 7,100 6,400 35,900 Total : 63,300 35,800 22,800 121,900 : North Central : IL : 21,000 31,500 23,500 76,000 IN : 25,000 23,800 13,200 62,000 IA : 25,000 39,500 33,500 98,000 KS : 25,000 29,000 11,000 65,000 MI : 28,000 16,000 8,000 52,000 MN : 33,000 31,000 23,000 87,000 MO : 53,900 37,500 10,600 102,000 NE : 11,000 26,000 18,000 55,000 ND : 5,800 13,000 11,700 30,500 OH : 36,500 26,000 10,500 73,000 SD : 6,500 16,000 10,000 32,500 WI : 32,400 27,400 19,200 79,000 Total : 303,100 316,700 192,200 812,000 : South : AL 2/ : 30,000 45,000 AR : 20,500 12,100 9,900 42,500 FL 2/ : 25,000 40,000 GA : 24,500 12,000 6,500 43,000 KY 2/ : 48,000 88,000 LA 2/ : 15,500 26,500 MS 2/ : 29,500 43,000 NC : 32,000 16,000 9,000 57,000 OK : 42,200 25,500 5,300 73,000 TN 2/ : 57,000 80,000 TX : 133,000 54,000 18,000 205,000 VA 2/ : 31,000 47,000 Other States 2/ 3/ : 43,800 56,900 Total : 532,000 233,900 81,000 846,900 : West : CA : 35,500 28,500 20,000 84,000 OR 2/ : 27,000 37,500 WA : 20,500 8,100 7,400 36,000 Other States 2/ 4/ : 51,110 120,610 Total : 134,110 92,100 51,900 278,110 : US : 1,032,510 678,500 347,900 2,058,910 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1997 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : NY : 1,500 2,100 4,100 7,700 PA : 1,800 3,000 2,900 7,700 Other States 1/ : 1,595 1,318 2,050 4,963 Total : 4,895 6,418 9,050 20,363 : North Central : IL : 800 6,550 20,650 28,000 IN : 1,300 4,600 10,000 15,900 IA : 1,600 8,900 22,700 33,200 KS : 3,200 20,300 24,300 47,800 MI : 1,400 2,900 6,200 10,500 MN : 3,200 8,900 17,700 29,800 MO : 5,300 13,300 11,300 29,900 NE : 1,000 15,700 30,300 47,000 ND : 1,500 12,100 26,600 40,200 OH : 2,600 5,200 7,300 15,100 SD : 1,200 17,800 25,000 44,000 WI : 2,700 5,100 9,000 16,800 Total : 25,800 121,350 211,050 358,200 : South : AL 2/ : 3,400 9,700 AR : 1,700 2,200 10,900 14,800 FL 2/ : 1,800 10,300 GA : 2,500 3,400 5,900 11,800 KY 2/ : 3,800 13,900 LA 2/ : 1,700 8,500 MS 2/ : 3,000 12,500 NC : 1,600 2,500 4,900 9,000 OK : 5,500 16,500 12,000 34,000 TN 2/ : 4,300 11,800 TX : 22,000 55,000 52,000 129,000 VA 2/ : 2,100 8,500 Other States 2/ 3/ : 4,900 11,365 Total : 58,300 112,253 114,612 285,165 : West : CA : 2,500 7,000 20,500 30,000 OR 2/ : 1,700 17,500 WA : 950 3,700 11,050 15,700 Other States 2/ 4/ : 9,540 241,410 Total : 14,690 98,620 191,300 304,610 : US : 103,685 338,641 526,012 968,338 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1996 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : NY : 16,800 11,200 8,000 36,000 PA : 24,000 17,700 8,300 50,000 Other States 1/ : 22,100 7,200 6,300 35,600 Total : 62,900 36,100 22,600 121,600 : North Central : IL : 21,000 32,000 23,000 76,000 IN : 24,000 24,000 13,000 61,000 IA : 26,000 41,000 31,000 98,000 KS : 25,000 30,500 10,500 66,000 MI : 28,000 17,000 8,000 53,000 MN : 31,000 33,000 23,000 87,000 MO : 54,600 39,200 10,200 104,000 NE : 11,500 26,500 18,000 56,000 ND : 5,000 15,000 11,000 31,000 OH : 35,000 27,000 10,000 72,000 SD : 6,000 17,500 9,000 32,500 WI : 32,400 27,400 19,200 79,000 Total : 299,500 330,100 185,900 815,500 : South : AL 2/ : 31,000 45,000 AR : 20,500 12,500 10,000 43,000 FL 2/ : 25,000 40,000 GA : 24,000 12,000 7,000 43,000 KY 2/ : 47,000 88,000 LA 2/ : 15,500 27,000 MS 2/ : 31,500 44,000 NC : 32,000 17,000 9,000 58,000 OK : 40,200 26,500 5,300 72,000 TN 2/ : 57,000 80,000 TX : 133,000 55,000 17,000 205,000 VA 2/ : 32,000 48,000 Other States 2/ 3/ : 39,300 57,700 Total : 528,000 242,700 80,000 850,700 : West : CA : 33,500 30,000 18,500 82,000 OR 2/ : 27,500 38,500 WA : 20,400 8,000 7,600 36,000 Other States 2/ 4/ : 49,310 119,610 Total : 130,710 96,200 49,200 276,110 : US : 1,021,110 705,100 337,700 2,063,910 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1996 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : NY : 1,500 2,200 4,000 7,700 PA : 1,800 3,000 2,900 7,700 Other States 1/ : 1,573 1,300 2,100 4,973 Total : 4,873 6,500 9,000 20,373 : North Central : IL : 800 6,950 20,350 28,100 IN : 1,300 4,700 9,900 15,900 IA : 1,700 10,700 20,800 33,200 KS : 3,400 21,300 23,100 47,800 MI : 1,400 3,100 6,100 10,600 MN : 3,400 9,300 17,100 29,800 MO : 5,300 13,800 10,900 30,000 NE : 1,100 15,700 30,200 47,000 ND : 900 13,500 25,900 40,300 OH : 2,700 5,500 6,900 15,100 SD : 1,000 20,000 23,000 44,000 WI : 2,600 5,200 9,000 16,800 Total : 25,600 129,750 203,250 358,600 : South : AL 2/ : 3,600 9,800 AR : 1,800 2,300 10,900 15,000 FL 2/ : 1,800 10,300 GA : 2,300 3,500 6,000 11,800 KY 2/ : 3,700 14,000 LA 2/ : 1,800 8,700 MS 2/ : 3,100 12,600 NC : 1,700 2,600 4,900 9,200 OK : 5,400 18,100 10,500 34,000 TN 2/ : 4,300 11,800 TX : 22,000 56,000 51,000 129,000 VA 2/ : 2,200 8,600 Other States 2/ 3/ : 4,100 11,365 Total : 57,800 116,000 112,365 286,165 : West : CA : 2,300 7,600 20,100 30,000 OR 2/ : 1,700 17,500 WA : 950 3,700 11,050 15,700 Other States 2/ 4/ : 9,500 241,710 Total : 14,450 98,960 191,500 304,910 : US : 102,723 351,210 516,115 970,048 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Number of Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1995 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : Northeast : NY : 16,800 11,400 7,800 36,000 PA : 24,000 17,700 8,300 50,000 Other States 1/ : 21,700 8,000 5,700 35,400 Total : 62,500 37,100 21,800 121,400 : North Central : IL : 22,000 31,500 23,500 77,000 IN : 24,500 25,000 12,500 62,000 IA : 26,000 42,800 31,200 100,000 KS : 25,000 30,500 10,500 66,000 MI : 29,000 17,000 8,000 54,000 MN : 35,000 34,000 18,000 87,000 MO : 55,000 40,100 9,900 105,000 NE : 10,500 27,500 18,000 56,000 ND : 5,600 15,600 10,800 32,000 OH : 37,500 26,500 10,000 74,000 SD : 6,000 17,000 10,000 33,000 WI : 32,600 28,100 19,300 80,000 Total : 308,700 335,600 181,700 826,000 : South : AL 2/ : 32,000 47,000 AR : 20,500 12,500 10,000 43,000 FL 2/ : 24,000 39,000 GA : 25,400 12,500 7,100 45,000 KY 2/ : 48,000 89,000 LA 2/ : 15,500 27,000 MS 2/ : 29,000 42,000 NC : 32,000 17,000 9,000 58,000 OK : 39,200 26,500 5,300 71,000 TN 2/ : 57,000 81,000 TX : 123,000 61,000 18,000 202,000 VA 2/ : 31,000 47,000 Other States 2/ 3/ : 38,500 58,800 Total : 515,100 252,700 82,000 849,800 : West : CA : 33,000 28,800 18,200 80,000 OR 2/ : 27,500 38,500 WA : 20,300 8,000 7,700 36,000 Other States 2/ 4/ : 45,820 119,820 Total : 126,620 100,000 47,700 274,320 : US : 1,012,920 725,400 333,200 2,071,520 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Land in Farms: Economic Sales Class by State, Region, and United States, June 1, 1995 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Economic Sales Class : State :--------------------------------------: and : $1,000- : $10,000- : $100,000 : Total Region : $9,999 : $99,999 : & Over : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Acres : Northeast : NY : 1,500 2,200 4,000 7,700 PA : 1,900 3,000 2,800 7,700 Other States 1/ : 1,523 1,300 2,200 5,023 Total : 4,923 6,500 9,000 20,423 : North Central : IL : 800 6,800 20,500 28,100 IN : 1,300 5,100 9,500 15,900 IA : 1,800 11,200 20,200 33,200 KS : 3,400 21,300 23,100 47,800 MI : 1,500 3,100 6,100 10,700 MN : 3,600 9,600 16,600 29,800 MO : 5,400 14,000 10,600 30,000 NE : 900 15,700 30,400 47,000 ND : 1,200 13,600 25,500 40,300 OH : 2,800 5,600 6,800 15,200 SD : 1,300 19,400 23,300 44,000 WI : 2,700 5,200 9,000 16,900 Total : 26,700 130,600 201,600 358,900 : South : AL 2/ : 3,800 10,200 AR : 1,800 2,300 10,900 15,000 FL 2/ : 1,800 10,300 GA : 2,400 3,500 6,100 12,000 KY 2/ : 3,700 14,000 LA 2/ : 1,600 8,500 MS 2/ : 3,100 13,000 NC : 1,600 2,700 4,900 9,200 OK : 5,300 18,400 10,300 34,000 TN 2/ : 4,300 12,000 TX : 14,000 55,000 60,000 129,000 VA 2/ : 2,200 8,600 Other States 2/ 3/ : 3,800 11,520 Total : 49,400 119,000 118,920 287,320 : West : CA : 2,300 7,500 20,200 30,000 OR 2/ : 1,700 17,500 WA : 950 3,700 11,150 15,800 Other States 2/ 4/ : 8,500 242,310 Total : 13,450 99,300 192,860 305,610 : US : 94,473 355,400 522,380 972,253 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, RI, and VT. 2/ Estimates not available for all sales classes. 3/ DE, MD, SC, and WV. 4/ AK, AZ, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY. Percent of Farms and Land in Farms: By Economic Sales Class, United States, June 1, 1995-97 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Economic : Percent of Total : Sales :-------------------------------: Average Size Farm Class : Farms : Land : (Acres) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1995 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 21.5 2.7 59 $2,500 - $4,999 : 14.4 2.9 94 $5,000 - $9,999 : 13.0 4.1 148 $10,000 - $19,999 : 11.7 6.6 265 $20,000 - $39,999 : 10.5 9.8 438 $40,000 - $99,999 : 12.8 20.2 734 $100,000 - $249,999 : 10.3 25.7 1,170 $250,000 - $499,999 : 3.5 13.1 1,755 $500,000 + : 2.3 14.9 3,038 : Total : 100.0 100.0 469 : : 1996 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 22.6 3.0 62 $2,500 - $4,999 : 14.3 3.1 102 $5,000 - $9,999 : 12.6 4.5 168 $10,000 - $19,999 : 11.4 6.5 268 $20,000 - $39,999 : 10.2 9.8 452 $40,000 - $99,999 : 12.6 19.9 742 $100,000 - $249,999 : 10.1 25.2 1,173 $250,000 - $499,999 : 3.8 12.9 1,596 $500,000 + : 2.4 15.1 2,957 : Total : 100.0 100.0 470 : : 1997 : $1,000 - $2,499 : 24.3 3.1 60 $2,500 - $4,999 : 13.9 3.2 109 $5,000 - $9,999 : 12.0 4.4 172 $10,000 - $19,999 : 10.9 6.2 268 $20,000 - $39,999 : 10.1 9.5 444 $40,000 - $99,999 : 11.9 19.3 760 $100,000 - $249,999 : 9.9 23.3 1,170 $250,000 - $499,999 : 4.2 14.6 1,635 $500,000 + : 2.8 16.4 2,726 : Total : 100.0 100.0 470 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reliability of Data in this Report Survey Procedures: These data were collected by the National Agricultural Statistics Service during the first two weeks of June using sampling procedures to ensure every farm operator had a chance of being selected. Two samples of farm operators are selected. First, NASS maintains a list of farms which are classified and sampled by size and type. Larger farms are selected with greater frequency but all farms are represented. A second sample consists of segments of land scientifically selected from aerial photography. Each June, highly trained interviewers locate each selected land segment and identify every farm operating land within the sample segment's boundaries. The names of farms found in these area segments are matched against the list of farms; those not found on the list represent all farms not on the NASS list. This methodology is known as multiple frame sampling, with an area sample used to measure incompleteness of the list. The area segments also provide independent indications of number of farms and land in farms. Beginning in 1995, interviewers counted operations having 5 or more horses or ponies and no other agricultural sales as horse farms. An operation with 1 or more horses with agricultural sales of at least $1,000, qualified as a farm. This is a continuing effort to have comparability with Ag Census data. Estimation Procedures: National, Regional, and State data were reviewed for reasonableness and consistency. Each State Statistical Office submits its analysis to the Agricultural Statistics Board (ASB) which prepares the June 1 based estimates for publication. Farm numbers and land in farm estimates are based on survey results and the historical relationship of official estimates to the survey results. Revision Policy: Farm numbers information is subject to revision the following year and following review of the Department of Commerce's five-year Census of Agriculture. The basis for revision must be supported by additional data that directly affect the level of the estimate. A historical publication with revisions for 1988-92 was published July 28, 1995. Reliability: Two types of errors, sampling and nonsampling, are possible in an estimate based on a sample survey. Both types affect the "precision" of the estimates. Sampling error occurs because a complete census is not taken. The sampling error measures the variation in estimates from the average of all possible samples. An estimate of 100 with a sampling error of 1 would mean that chances are 19 out of 20 that the estimates from all possible samples averaged together would be between 98 and 102; which is the survey estimate, plus or minus two times the sampling error. The sampling error expressed as a percent of the estimate is called the relative sampling error. The relative sampling error for the U.S. number of farms was just above 1 percent and just above 1 percent for land in farms. The sampling error for total number of farms and total land in farms is less than the sampling error for each component of the total, such as number of farms by economic sales class. Relative sampling errors by economic sales class generally ranged from 2.2 to 3.5 percent for number of farms and 2.6 to 7.9 percent for land in farms at the U.S. level. Nonsampling errors can occur in complete censuses as well as sample surveys. They are caused by the inability to obtain correct information from each person sampled, differences in interpreting questions or definitions, and mistakes in coding or processing the data. Special efforts are taken at each step of the survey to minimize nonsampling errors. Terms and Definition A farm is defined as "any establishment from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were sold or would normally be sold during the year". Government payments are included in sales. Institutional farms, experimental and research farms, and Indian Reservations are included as farms. To be considered a farm, the place must be operating on June 1. Places with all their acreage enrolled in set aside or other government programs are considered operating. Land in farms is all land operated by farms as of June 1. It includes crop and livestock acreage, wasteland, woodland, pasture, land in summer fallow, idle cropland, and land enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program and other set aside or commodity acreage programs. It excludes public, industrial, and grazing association land and nonagricultural land. It excludes all land operated by establishments not qualifying as farms. Economic sales classes are based on the gross value of sales, which includes sales of agricultural products such as crops, livestock, horses, honey, furs, fish, nursery and greenhouse products, rabbits, etc. Government program payments from the previous year are also included. The next "Farms and Land in Farms" report will be released in July 1998. 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