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USDA mulls acreage recount

The USDA’s National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) is considering the possibility of re-surveying planted acreage numbers. The latest survey of planted acres and acres left to plant was done the first couple of weeks in June when many farmers hadn’t yet planted because of weather. The USDA will look at the percent of unplanted acres in that report, to be released Friday, according to Lance Honig, crops branch chief at USDA-NASS.

“If that percentage is exceptionally high, which seems like a possibility this year certainly,” said Honig, in an interview provided by the USDA, “we’ll make a determination then as to whether or not we need to go back and do any follow-up to see how much things might have changed from what those intentions still were.”

If there’s the need to re-survey, Honig says that will likely be announced the same time as the report is released on Friday (11:00 a.m. Central/12:00 noon Eastern).