Template Vegetable Chemical Use Press Release

NEWS RELEASE

United States Department of Agriculture

NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS SERVICE

[FIELD OFFICE NAME] FIELD OFFICE

[ADDRESS]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	Contact: [Firstname] [Lastname]
	(XXX) XXX-XXXX

USDA measures [STATE] vegetable chemical usage

[CITY, State] – [Month ##], [Year] – Interviewers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will interview [more than/nearly] [sample size rounded up/down] vegetable growers in [STATE] to gather information for the 2022 Vegetable Chemical Use Survey this fall.

The survey will collect information on bearing acreage, pest management practices, acres treated, and application rates, fertilizer and pesticide application, acres treated and rates applied to more than [X] vegetable crops. In addition to [STATE], vegetable growers in 16 other states will also hear from NASS as the agency collects comprehensive U.S. vegetable production practices information.

“Growers benefit from providing their information because the resultant data will illustrate the industry’s environmental practices and assure the quality of U.S. food to consumers here and around the world,” said [FIRSTNAME LASTNAME], [director of the NASS [REGION] Field Office]/[[STATE] state statistician]. “I encourage every grower to take the time to respond, if they receive this survey.”

The data will paint a detailed picture of fertilizer, pesticide use and other pest management practices used by the vegetable growers across the nation. To conduct the survey, NASS representatives will call growers to arrange phone or in-person interviews. Growers are encouraged to have their spray records available for reference. If these services were contracted, growers should be prepared to give consent to access these records.

NASS safeguards the privacy of all respondents. The information growers provide will be used for statistical purposes only. In accordance with federal law, responses will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed in identifiable form.

The data will be published online in NASS’s Quick Stats database next year. This database and all NASS reports are available on nass.usda.gov. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS [Region/State] Field Office at [Toll-free Number].

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NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate, and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.