Agricultural Statistics is published each year to meet the diverse need for a reliable reference book on agricultural production. It covers an extensive list of issues related to agriculture including livestock, farm values, crop production, and foreign trade. The estimates for crops, livestock, and poultry made by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are prepared mainly to give timely current state and national totals and averages. They are based on data obtained by sample surveys of farmers and of people who do business with farmers. The survey data are supplemented by information from the Census of Agriculture taken every five years. Being estimates, they are subject to revision as more data become available from commercial or government sources. Unless otherwise indicated, the totals for the United States shown in the various tables on area, production, numbers, price, value, supplies, and disposition are based on official estimates. They exclude states for which no official estimates are compiled. Professionals in farming, ranching, agricultural consulting, and animal science will find this most valuable.