United States-Organic farming.

UNITED STATES-ORGANIC FARMING.

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services encourages all organic farmers in the state to participate in the first wide-scale survey of organic producers and producers transitioning from traditional to organic production methods.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service, an office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will conduct the survey in May, June and July. The survey will look at all aspects of organic agriculture during the 2008 calendar year -- from production and marketing practices to income and expenses. The 2007 Census of Agriculture counted more than 20,000 U.S. farms engaged in organic production, nearly 315 of them in Virginia .

The organic production survey will help agriculture officials at state, federal and local levels to learn more about how the growth of organic production is changing the face of U.S. agriculture. NASS will mail the Organic Production Survey in early May to all known organic producers in the United States . Producers are required to respond by June 17. NASS expects to publish the results in the winter of 2009.

Survey participants are guaranteed by law that their individual information will be kept confidential.