Director, Statistics Division

Dan Kerestes

Picture of Dan Kerestes, Director of Statistics Divison

Dan Kerestes is the director of the Statistics Division and executive director of USDA’s Agricultural Statistics Board at the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). He is responsible for the statistics used by the Agricultural Statistics Board in establishing estimates and forecasts of the nation’s agriculture; evaluating commodity statistics; determining needs and implementing proper statistical plans; and ensuring that appropriate methods and procedures are used in all phases of the agency’s statistical program.

In his 37-year career, he served as the chief of the agency’s Livestock Branch from 2001-2017 and as head of the Livestock Section from 1998-2001. During this time, he guided national programs for all livestock estimates produced by NASS. Before this, Kerestes served as the national commodity analyst for 6 years for corn, soybeans, barley, oats, oilseeds, and rice. Before being assigned to the Washington, DC headquarters, Dan worked in the Boise, Idaho and Fargo, North Dakota field offices. He continues to serve on the North American Tripartite Committee on Agricultural Statistics working with statistical agencies from Canada and Mexico. He is a 2007 graduate of the Federal Executive Institute and a 2020 graduate of the Key Executive Leadership Program from American University’s School of Public Administration.

Kerestes’ education includes a Master’s of Science in agricultural economics from North Dakota State University, and a Bachelor’s of Science in resource economics from the University of Minnesota. He was born and raised on a general crop and livestock farm in central Minnesota.

Last Modified: 09/22/2021