United States Department of Agriculture

The 2021 Organic Survey is a complete inventory of all known organic producers who are certified, exempt from certification in the Unites States (those grossing less than $5,000 annually from organic sales), and those producers transitioning to certified organic production.

Your responses will provide important, detailed, unbiased information to help determine the economic impact of certified organic production at the national and state levels. According to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, total certified organic product sales by farms in the U.S. have continued to show substantial growth over the last few years. Data published from the 2021 Organic Survey will help provide the industry with a reliable source of timely information to use in justifying research projects and fund requests that benefit producers.

The agriculture industry and all levels of government use the information to prepare a wide variety of certified 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 certified 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 certified organic industry use the data to plan production and marketing of new products

Survey forms will be mailed in March to approximately 22,000 producers nationwide. Responses are due online, by mail, or phone by April 22, 2022.

Yes. Survey participants are encouraged to use the secure online response system at agcounts.usda.gov. The online questionnaire is user friendly, accessible on most electronic devices, and saves you valuable time by calculating totals and automatically skipping questions not applicable to your operation. Additionally, responding online improves data quality and saves resources. All you need to get started is your survey code. If you misplace the letter with your survey code, you can also find it on the mail label and in the top left corner of your report form

The survey will look at certified organic farming and ranching activities during 2021, including:

• Production of field crops, vegetables, fruits, tree nuts, berries, livestock and poultry;
• Production practices such as pest management, cover crops, crop rotation, rotational grazing, conservation tillage, water management and buffer zones;
• Production expenses;
• Marketing practices, including wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer sales; and
• Value-added production and processing.

No. 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.

Yes. The information you provide will be used for statistical purposes only. In accordance with federal law, your responses will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed in identifiable form. For more information on how we protect your information, visit the NASS confidentiality page. By law, every NASS employee as well as every representative has taken an oath and is subject to a jail term of up to 5 years, a fine of up to $250,000, or both if he or she willfully discloses ANY identifiable information about you.

Survey results will be published in December 2022 and will be available at www.nass.usda.gov/go/organic.

Call toll-free (888) 424-7828 or visit www.nass.usda.gov/go/organic..