Aug 26, 2021
USDA to survey fruit growers about chemical use

In the next few weeks, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service will survey fruit growers in 12 states, including Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey, for its biennial Fruit Chemical Use Survey.

This survey will collect information on bearing acreage, pest management practices, fertilizer types, acres treated, application rates, pesticide application, acres treated and rates applied to more than 21 fruit crops.

“Growers benefit from providing this information because it is used to re-register products for their use, to illustrate the industry’s environmental practices, and to assure the quality of U.S. food to consumers here and around the world,” said King Whetstone, director of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Northeastern Regional Field Office. “I encourage every grower to take the time to respond if they receive this survey.”

The Fruit Chemical Use Survey will provide much-needed information about the current crop production practices used in the United States. The results of this survey will paint a detailed picture of pesticide use and other pest management practices used by fruit growers across the nation. To conduct the survey, NASS representatives will contact selected Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey growers to collect the survey information. The results of this survey will be available in aggregate form only, ensuring that no individual operation or producer can be identified, as required by federal law.

Survey results will be published in NASS’s online database, Quick Stats, in July 2022. This database and all NASS reports are available on the agency’s website. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Northeastern Regional Field Office at 800-498-1518.

Kari A. Peter, Penn State University




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