Information from the 2007 Census of Agriculture is now available for 73 American Indian reservations, including reservation-level information on agricultural production, economics and demographics for individual farms.
The Census counted 79,703 American Indian and Alaska Native farmers operating 61,472 farms and ranches, up 88 percent from 2002, significantly outpacing the 7 percent increase in U.S. farm operators overall.
The 2007 Census of Agriculture marks the first time the USDA's National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) has attempted to collect census forms from individual farm and ranch operators on American Indian reservations in every state, which accounts for the steep increase in American Indian farmers.
"In the past, a reservation was counted as a single farm. Now, each individual farmer or rancher on the reservation is counted, providing a truer picture of agricultural activity on our nation's American Indian reservations," said Carol House, deputy administrator for NASS.
During the 2002 Census of Agriculture, NASS conducted a pilot project to collect and publish reservation-level data for individual farms and farm operators on 19 reservations in
"Because of the success of this project, we significantly expanded our efforts in 2007, collecting data from farm and ranch operators on American Indian reservations in every state," House said.
The publication, along with all other 2007 Census of Agriculture publications and results, is available online at www.agcensus.usda.gov or by calling (800) 727-9540.
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