Back in 2015, the USDA started doing some research into local food marketing and they’ve just announced the second survey that kicks off this month. The Local Food Marketing Practices Survey looks at food systems regionally and locally to see how that food’s being grown and marketed. The goal is to be able to share that data and compare it to the information found in 2015. Even though the survey’s starting this month, the data won’t be released to the public until November 2021.
This survey’s a part of the Census of Agriculture Program, which means that it’s protected by law and the information provided by farmers is confidential. Some of the questions on the survey ask farmers about the value of their crops and animals, what expenses they had, and how they go about marketing what they’ve grown or raised. Any farmer that gets one of these surveys can complete it through the mail or online by the February 16th deadline.
