USDA NASS Agricultural Statistics Scraper

Extract agricultural statistics from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) QuickStats database — crop production, prices, area harvested, livestock, and agricultural census data by commodity, state, and year.

What This Actor Does

This actor scrapes the USDA NASS QuickStats database to extract structured agricultural data including:

• Crop production volumes (bushels, tons, bales)
• Area harvested and planted (acres)
• Prices received by farmers (per bushel, per hundredweight)
• Livestock inventory and sales
• Agricultural census data (every 5 years)
• County, state, and national level statistics

No API key required — data is fetched directly from the NASS QuickStats website. If you have a free NASS API key, you can optionally provide it for direct API access.

Data Source

USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service — QuickStats
Website: https://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/
Free API key available at: https://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/api

Use Cases

• Agricultural market analysis — Track crop prices and production trends
• Supply chain research — Analyze commodity availability by region and year
• Academic research — Access standardized USDA agricultural data
• Farm economics — Study income, expenses, and profitability metrics
• Food system analysis — Map production geography for specific commodities

Input Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
mode	Select	Search mode: searchCommodity, searchByState, browseCensus, searchSurvey
commodity	String	Crop or commodity name (e.g. CORN, SOYBEANS, WHEAT, COTTON, CATTLE)
state	Select	US state or "US TOTAL" for national data
year	String	4-digit year (e.g. 2022)
sector	Select	Data sector: CROPS, ANIMALS & PRODUCTS, ECONOMICS, DEMOGRAPHICS, ENVIRONMENTAL
source	Select	SURVEY (annual) or CENSUS (every 5 years)
agg_level	Select	Geographic aggregation: NATIONAL, STATE, COUNTY, etc.
apiKey	String	Optional NASS API key (free, get at quickstats.nass.usda.gov/api)
maxItems	Integer	Maximum records to return (default: 100, max: 5000)

Output Fields

Field	Type	Description
source_desc	String	Program: SURVEY or CENSUS
year	Integer	Year of the data
period_desc	String	Period (YEAR, APR, MARKETING YEAR, etc.)
agg_level_desc	String	Geographic level (NATIONAL, STATE, COUNTY)
state_name	String	State name
state_fips_code	String	State FIPS code
county_name	String	County name (county-level data)
county_code	String	County FIPS code
commodity_desc	String	Commodity name (CORN, SOYBEANS, etc.)
statisticcat_desc	String	Category (AREA HARVESTED, PRODUCTION, PRICE RECEIVED)
unit_desc	String	Unit of measurement (ACRES, BU, $ / BU)
value	Number	Statistical value
cv_percent	Number	Coefficient of variation % (data quality)
domain_desc	String	Domain (TOTAL, CHEMICAL, ECONOMIC CLASS)
domaincat_desc	String	Domain category
sector_desc	String	Sector (CROPS, ANIMALS & PRODUCTS, etc.)
data_item	String	Full data item description
scrapedAt	String	ISO-8601 scrape timestamp

Example Output

{
  "source_desc": "SURVEY",
  "year": 2022,
  "period_desc": "YEAR",
  "agg_level_desc": "STATE",
  "state_name": "Iowa",
  "state_fips_code": "19",
  "commodity_desc": "CORN",
  "statisticcat_desc": "PRODUCTION",
  "unit_desc": "BU",
  "value": 2466834000.0,
  "cv_percent": 2.1,
  "domain_desc": "TOTAL",
  "domaincat_desc": "NOT SPECIFIED",
  "sector_desc": "CROPS",
  "data_item": "CORN, GRAIN - PRODUCTION, MEASURED IN BU",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-06-02T10:00:00+00:00"
}

Modes

searchCommodity (default)

Search for all data for a specific commodity. Combine with state and year to narrow down.

searchByState

Get all agricultural statistics for a specific state in a given year.

browseCensus

Browse agricultural census data (collected every 5 years: 2017, 2022). Census data is more comprehensive than survey data.

searchSurvey

Search annual survey data by commodity and filters.

Common Commodities

CORN, SOYBEANS, WHEAT, COTTON, RICE, SORGHUM, BARLEY, OATS, SUNFLOWER, POTATOES, TOMATOES, APPLES, CATTLE, HOGS, CHICKENS, TURKEYS, MILK, EGGS, HONEY

Data Note: Suppressed Values

USDA NASS suppresses some data to protect individual farmer privacy. Suppressed values are indicated in the raw data as (D), (Z), etc. This actor omits the value field for suppressed records (dimensional fields like state, commodity, and year are still included).

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is an API key required?
A: No. This actor works without an API key by fetching data through the QuickStats website. If you have a free NASS API key, provide it via apiKey for potentially faster access.

Q: How do I get a free API key?
A: Register at https://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/api. The key is free and provides higher rate limits.

Q: What is the difference between SURVEY and CENSUS data?
A: SURVEY data is collected annually and provides timely estimates. CENSUS data is collected every 5 years (2012, 2017, 2022) and provides more detailed, comprehensive counts.

Q: How many records can I get?
A: Up to 5,000 records per run. For large extracts, run multiple queries with different filters.

Q: What does CV% mean?
A: The Coefficient of Variation percentage indicates data quality. Lower values indicate more reliable estimates. Values above 25% should be used with caution.