From the American Horse Council
Horse farm owners are being asked to participate in the 2007 Census of Agriculture, which will help determine the size and economic impact of the horse industry in the United States.
According to the American Horse Council, the census is taken every five years to count the number of farms and ranches and the individuals who operate them. The census is conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“The Census of Agriculture is our chance to stand and be counted,” AHC president Jay Hickey said in a statement. “It is everyone’s responsibility to make sure that the equine community is accounted for in the 2007 Census of Agriculture.”
The AHC reports the American horse industry has a $102-billion impact on the U.S. economy and supports 1.4 million U.S. jobs. There are more than 9.2 million horses in the country, which makes the U.S. horse-owning population the largest in the world.
The 2007 Census of Agriculture will help measure land use and ownership, operator characteristics, production practices, and income and expenditures, among other things.
A link to the census can be found at the AHC Web site: www.horsecouncil.org.
There are three ways in which horse owners can participate in the census:
-- If your farm received a survey for census participation in the past (the last census was taken in 2002), your farm will be mailed a survey that you can fill in and mail back.
-- If your farm wasn’t part of the 2002 census, or you are not sure if you participated, you can fill out a basic USDA census registration form online at the AHC Web site. The form is submitted online, and a survey will be mailed to you.
-- In late December, the census survey will be available to all farm owners and operators to fill out online even if they have not pre-registered.
Census forms will be mailed Dec. 28. The mailing will include further instructions about how to log in and respond to the census via a secure Web connection. All census forms must be completed by Feb. 2, 2008.
More information is available at the USDA Web site: www.agcensus.usda.gov.