January Cattle Survey - Backgrounder

NASS Programs

2014 Cattle Survey

About the Survey

How NASS Collects Data?

Who Uses The Information?

USDA’s National Agricultural
Statistics Service (NASS) conducts
the Cattle Survey once a year in
January to collect information on
inventory of beef and dairy cattle,
calf crop, and cattle on feed
operations.* NASS publishes the
results in the Cattle report.

NASS will conduct the Cattle
Survey in every state except
Alaska.

Cattle producers, agribusinesses,
and policymakers use data from
the cattle survey as a critical
decision-making tool. For
instance:

NASS will next release the results
of the survey on January 31,
2014. The survey results provide
a current measure of cattle
inventories nationwide.
All previous Cattle reports are
available online at:
http://bit.ly/NASS_Cattle.

*In March 2013, NASS suspended
the July Cattle Survey and resulting
report due to reduced funding caused
by sequestration. The report remains
suspended for FY14.

Response Confidentiality
All information NASS collects in
this survey will be kept strictly
confidential, as required by
federal law. The results of this
survey will be available in
aggregate form only, without
revealing any information that
may identify individual
operations.

In January, NASS will mail the
survey to more than 40,000 cattle
operations.
The survey asks producers to
provide information about their
beef and dairy cattle inventories,
calf crop, and cattle on feed
operations.
Producers who receive the survey
may respond in either of the
following ways:
• Online – Secure, online
reporting is the most timely,
cost-effective option.
The cover letter includes
instructions for this easy
option.

• Producers use the
information to determine
production and marketing
strategies and plan purchases
and capital investments.
• Processors, warehouse and
storage companies, and the
transportation sector rely
on the reports to anticipate
future volume.
• Analysts use data on breeding
stock inventory and calf crop
to forecast the expansion and
contraction of beef supplies.

• By mail or fax – Producers fill
out the survey questionnaire
and return it in the envelope
provided or via fax.
A NASS representative will
contact producers who do not
respond to offer the option of a
telephone or personal interview.

United States Department of Agriculture
National Agricultural Statistics Service

www.nass.usda.gov