| Below are answers to
some the most common questions asked by farmers and growers each year,
just click on the question to get the answer. If you have something
else you would like to ask us please contact us on email
farming-statistics@defra.gsi.gov.uk
or on telephone 01904 455315.
What use is made of the information that farmers
provide on their survey forms?
What benefits are there for farmers, growers and
landowners?
Why do farming, growing and land-owning organisations
and industry support the survey?
What about confidentiality of the information provided?
How does Defra doing to minimise the amount of survey
paperwork?
What happens if the survey is not completed?
Why not use the information given to Defra on IACS
and other forms?
Why are there December and June surveys?
Why are certain farms included every year?
Why has such a small holding been included?
How does Defra measure the "size" of a
farm?
What use is made of the information that farmers
provide on their survey forms?
- Virtually all of the information is required to meet legal requirements
to provide statistical information to the Statistical Office of
the European Union. The information is used by policy-makers at
EU and national level to develop and monitor policies for the industry
and provide clues to future outputs and prices.
- Survey results also serve as an agreed dataset for policy makers
and those who seek to influence the policy making process. Those
seeking to influence the process are usually, but not exclusively,
industry and trade organisations. They also use the information
to provide advice to their members to assist in the planning of
future activity with more confidence.
What benefits are there for farmers, growers and land owners?
- Accurate statistical information ensures that the policy-making
process is as well informed as it can be.
- The information is also made available in a variety of formats
(e.g. maps, statistical time series) to a wide range of individuals
and organisations. They use the information for a variety of purposes
that contribute to an increased understanding of the industries
and the rural economy.
- Under carefully controlled conditions information relating to
individual holdings may be made available. This will usually be
done only to help policy makers develop a fuller understanding
of the industry, environment or rural communities, deal with emergencies
or ensure that important information (e.g. changes to grant or
subsidy schemes or consulting on new regulations) is passed to
farmers, growers and landowners.
Why do farming, growing and land-owning organisations
and industry support the survey?
- The results of the Survey are highly valued by farming organisations
and industry in identifying likely changes to output. This enables
them to provide advice to their members to assist in the planning
of future agricultural activity with more confidence.
What about confidentiality of the information
provided?
- Survey data is treated in the strictest confidence and at all times
remains under the control of Food Chain Analysis Division 4. The
Agricultural Statistics Act states that survey information relating
to an individual holding cannot be released without the consent
of the person who supplied that information. Any information that
is released is checked before publication to ensure that individual
holdings cannot be identified.
-
However, the Act also states that there are circumstances in which
consideration may be given to lifting this bar on the release of
information relating to an individual holding. Click
here to view an explanation of the policy operated by Food Chain
Analysis Division 4 and measures to ensure we retain control of
the data.
What is Defra doing to minimise the amount of survey paperwork?
- Defra is committed to minimising the burden of paperwork which the
survey places on farmers, growers and landowners
- In 1996 a strategy was devised that enables results to be derived
from returns received from 60% of farms. Previously returns were
sent to all holdings. The Food Chain Analysis Division 4 will
continue to explore whether alternative sampling strategies can
be deployed to reduce these numbers further.
- In 1997 we introduced 'customised' forms. These forms are shorter;
containing questions relating only to agricultural or horticultural
activity known to take place on the holding. Each form has a 'catch-all'
question for respondents to record any changes in activity. The
proportion of customised forms issued has been increasing and
they now account for almost half of those issued.
- Food Chain Analysis Division 4 will seek to increase the amount
of statistical information derived from administrative sources
such as IACS records and the Cattle Tracing System. Approximately
10,000 holdings either no longer receive a survey form or receive
customised forms because information is taken from IACS returns.
- In 2002 Statistics Division are
trialling an electronic version of the survey form. The electronic
form has a number of helpful features (e.g. previous years details,
enhanced guidance notes and a cross-checking facility). These
are designed to ensure it can be completed more quickly than the
paper version. Although a formal evaluation of the trial has yet
to be completed it is anticipated that an electronic form will
be made available to all in 2003. You can have a go at completing
an electronic survey form by accessing the 'Trial Run' area at
http://farmsurveys.defra.gov.uk
What if the survey form is not completed?
- The Agricultural Statistics Act, 1979 allows the Secretary of State
to serve notices requiring owners or occupiers of agricultural land
to provide certain information necessary for the production of agricultural
statistics. The Act specifies penalties for those failing to respond.
-
Non-response can result in a greater form-filling burden on other
holdings. To take account of non-response more holdings are selected
for the survey than strictly necessary to ensure than there are
enough returns to produce reliable results. This means that some
holdings will be included in the survey that may otherwise have
been excluded. Those who do not return their form may find our record
of activity on their holding out of date and miss out on important
information.
Why not use the information given to Defra on IACS and other
forms?
- The survey provides a very broad picture of the farming and horticultural
industries. It collects a wide range of information, some of which
is not included on IACS and other subsidy scheme declarations. For
example, the total farm area and not just the planted area, animal
numbers and types which do not attract subsidy (pigs poultry, dairy
cattle, etc), the labourforce and non-agricultural activity.
-
There is, of course, information common to the survey and IACS or
other subsidy schemes. It is quicker and easier for Food Chain Analysis
Division 4 to use information already submitted to the department
and this will be used wherever possible. However, it is not always
possible to do so as subsidy schemes were not developed for statistical
purposes and there can be differences in the way information is
categorised or the time it is collected.
-
For example, when Food Chain Analysis Division 4 compared IACS and
survey cropping data we found significant differences in the overall
areas declared. However, several thousand holdings were identified
where the data matched well and there was little other agricultural
activity and small labour forces- these farms no longer receive
survey forms. IACS cropping data is used for several thousand more
farms who receive customised forms that refer to other activity
known to take place on the farm.
- This does not mean that Food Chain Analysis Division 4 may not
be able to establish less obvious ways of matching data. The report
of the Policy Commission on the Future of Framing and Food recommended
combining data collection exercises such as IACS and the survey.
Food Chain Analysis Division 4 will be looking into this and reporting
back to the industry.
Why are there December and June surveys?
- The December survey provides important information on how livestock
numbers have changed since the previous June Survey, and it gives
the first indication of winter plantings. This information is widely
used by Defra, the Statistical Office of the European Union and
the agricultural industry.
Why are certain farms included every year?
- Survey forms are sent to approximately 60% of farms each year. However,
the chance of being selected is not spread equally amongst all farms.
In simple terms, the purpose of the survey is to produce total cropping
acreages, livestock numbers and size of the agricultural labour
force in England and Wales. The selection of holdings for the survey
is designed to ensure that the sample accurately represents the
make-up of the industry. Basically, the larger the farm the more
it is going to contribute to the overall position and more likely
to accurately reflect the trend of any changes in the industry.
- Therefore, under the current selection arrangements the largest
holdings are included every year. As the holdings become smaller
so their chance of being selected diminishes, with the smallest
holdings being included once every 10 years. This ensures Food Chain
Analysis Division 4 can produce accurate figures whilst keeping
to a minimum to number of farmers contacted.
-
New holdings receive a form for the survey immediately following
their creation and are classified according to their return. This
classification and estimate of size of the farm will determine how
often it is selected in future years. All holdings are contacted
for a full survey that is conducted once every 10 years (last held
in 2000).
Why has such a small holding been included?
- It is necessary to establish an understanding of activity on the smallest
holdings to establish an accurate picture of the industry. Our results
may not be accurate were we simply to assume that any changes going
on elsewhere in the industry were being replicated on the smallest
holdings.
How does Defra measure the "size" of a farm?
- Farms are grouped by type of farming and size of business using
the European Union's system of farm classification. This is based
on Standard Gross Margins (SGM) per hectare for crops and per head
for livestock estimated for the period 1987 to 1989, commonly known
as '1988' SGM.
-
The SGM is a financial measure based on the concept of the gross
margin for farming enterprises. Because information on gross margins
is not available for each farm, standards or norms have been calculated
for all of the major crop and livestock enterprises.
- The total SGM for each farm is calculated by multiplying its crop
areas and livestock numbers by the appropriate SGM coefficients
and then summing the result for all enterprises on the farm.
- A farm is classified to a farm type according to the distribution
of its SGMs among enterprises. Click here
to see how various types of farms are classified.
- Farm size is measured in European Size Units (ESU), where one
ESU is defined as 1200 European Currency Units (average value 1987-89)
of SGM. It is a measure of the economic size of holdings in terms
of the value they add to variable inputs and thus differs from physical
measures, such as area, which take no account of the intensity of
production. Five size groups are defined:
- very small size group less than 8 ESU;
- small 8 to less than 40 ESU;
- medium 40 to less than 100 ESU;
- large 100 to less than 200 ESU; and
- very large greater than 200 ESU.
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