Q & A with USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
Todd Steinacher sat down with Mark Schleusener, an Illinois state statistician with the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), to learn more about the history and procedures used to determine weekly crop progress, acreage, yield, and production numbers. Question: What is the history of the USDA and the crop report? Answer: Abraham Lincoln established the USDA in 1862 and the first crop report was published on July 10, 1863. In 1866, the USDA began a series of regular monthly reports on crop production. For corn in Illinois, the data series for state level production goes all the way back [...]
How is Soybean Harvest Different in 2020?
Q & A with Christy Ford, Grain Originator with CHS Carrollton I’m sure we can all agree that we will be glad when the challenges of 2020 are behind us. However, we may all come out stronger and more appreciative of how life used to be and how simple it was to do business. With soybean harvest underway in some parts of the state, I felt it was important to reach out to a good friend and my personal grain advisor to share how to handle the grain elevator during fall 2020. Christy Ford is the grain originator with [...]
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